Connect AI apps (MCP)

Kimiko includes an MCP server, so AI apps on your computer can search your meetings, read your notes and transcripts, and work with your tasks. MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard AI apps use to connect to tools.

The server, kimiko-mcp, is part of Kimiko and runs on your computer. The AI app starts the server when it needs it, and the server stops when the app closes the connection. There is no online version of the server, so only apps on the same computer can connect.

What an AI app can do

A connected app gets ten tools. Eight of them read your library, and two change tasks.

Tool	What it does
list_meetings	Lists meetings and notes, newest first, by date, project, or type
search_meetings	Searches transcripts, notes, summaries, and titles, and returns moments with timestamps
get_meeting	Shows a meeting’s details, who was invited and who spoke, and its latest summary
get_notes	Reads what you wrote, a polished version if you made one, and the live summaries
get_transcript	Reads a transcript a page at a time, so a long meeting doesn’t flood the app
get_screenshots	Reads the text Kimiko found in screenshots from a call, never the images
list_tasks	Lists your tasks with their meeting and project; tasks marked done only when the app asks
list_projects	Lists your projects with their task counts
create_task	Adds a task
update_task	Edits a task, moves it to another status or project, or marks it done

Search always matches keywords. If your search model runs on Ollama or another local server on your computer, search also matches by meaning. With the built-in setup, AI apps search by keyword. See chat search.

Ready-made prompts

Kimiko also offers three prompts. Apps that support MCP prompts show them as slash commands or in a prompt menu.

• weekly_review: a review of the past week, or of a longer period of up to 90 days, with decisions, commitments, open items, and open tasks by project. Its days argument sets the period, from 1 to 90 days (7 by default).
• meeting_prep: a prep note about a person or topic, with context, commitments on both sides, open items, and questions to raise. Its person_or_topic argument is required.
• open_loops: overdue tasks, and commitments from the last two weeks that never became a task. Its optional project argument, a project’s name or id, limits it to one project. The prompt asks the app to create a task only after you confirm.

In Claude Code, type / and pick Kimiko:meeting_prep (MCP), or type /mcp__Kimiko__meeting_prep Anna. Claude Code splits arguments at spaces, so give a one-word person or topic there.

What an app can never do

Kimiko doesn’t give AI apps a way to:

• start or stop a recording
• delete tasks, meetings, or notes
• create or delete projects
• change your notes
• open audio or screenshot images
• read your settings or API keys

With Allow task changes on, an app can still edit a task, including clearing its details, assignee, or dates.

Turn on access

Access is off until you turn it on.

1. Open Settings → Connections.
2. In the MCP server card, turn on Allow AI apps.

While it’s on, any app on your computer that starts Kimiko’s MCP server can read your meetings. Every add and copy action in Settings → Connections turns access on for you, and Kimiko tells you when it does.

Allow task changes, in the What apps can do card, is on by default. It lets apps create and update tasks. Turn it off and apps can read tasks but not change them. Kimiko refuses create_task and update_task at once, and leaves them out of the tool list an app loads after that.

Turning Allow AI apps off or on takes effect on a connected app’s next request. If an app tried to start Kimiko while access was off, restart the app. A change to Allow task changes also applies from the next request, but an app keeps the tool list it loaded when it connected until you restart or reconnect it.

Connect an app

On a Mac, let Kimiko’s server use your Keychain before an app first connects, so the one-time macOS prompt can’t hide behind the app. Choose Authorize now in the Keychain access row, then Always Allow. The row is in the MCP server card once access is on, and under Help otherwise. The macOS Keychain prompt explains more.

The AI apps card in Settings → Connections connects these apps for you:

• Claude (the desktop app): choose Add to Claude. Kimiko shows what it will write to Claude’s settings file, saves a backup first, and keeps your other settings. Choose Add, then quit Claude completely and open it again, because Claude reads its settings only when it starts. On a Mac, choose Claude → Quit Claude; on Windows, right-click the Claude icon in the system tray and choose Quit. Closing the window isn’t enough.
• Claude Code: choose Add to Claude Code to add Kimiko for all your projects, then start a new Claude Code session. If Kimiko can’t find the claude command, the row offers Copy command instead. Run the command in Terminal on a Mac, or in a terminal on Windows.
• Cursor: choose Add to Cursor. Cursor opens its own install dialog with Kimiko filled in; confirm the install there.
• VS Code: choose Add to VS Code to open VS Code’s install page for Kimiko, then confirm the install. Kimiko’s tools work in GitHub Copilot’s agent mode.
• LM Studio (version 0.3.17 or later): open More apps and choose Add to LM Studio. LM Studio opens its own dialog with Kimiko filled in; confirm it there.

The other apps under More apps have a Copy command, Copy config, or Copy path button: ChatGPT and Codex, Gemini CLI, Raycast, Zed, Windsurf, and Warp. Each copies a ready-made snippet with the exact path for your computer.

Add Kimiko by hand

Every app below starts the same server, named Kimiko, with no arguments or environment variables.

Whichever app you use, turn on Allow AI apps first. A copy action in Settings → Connections does it for you. On a Mac, also choose Authorize now in the Keychain access row, then Always Allow, before the app first connects.

The examples use the server’s path on a Mac, with Kimiko in the Applications folder:

/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp

If Kimiko is somewhere else, use the snippet from Settings → Connections instead. It always has the right path for the Kimiko you’re running. To copy only the path, open More apps and choose Copy path in the Raycast row.

On Windows, Add to Claude and Add to Cursor fill in the path for you. To set either up by hand, use Copy config in the Windsurf or Warp row under More apps: it copies the same mcpServers entry with the path escaped. Zed has its own Copy config, and so does the ChatGPT and Codex row, in its ⋯ menu. If you type a Windows path into JSON or TOML yourself, double every backslash (C:\\Users\\…\\kimiko-mcp.exe). On Windows, ~ in the paths below means your user folder (%USERPROFILE%).

Claude (desktop app)

Add this entry to Claude’s settings file, ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on a Mac or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json on Windows, keeping any other servers you have. On a Mac, the entry is:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Kimiko": {
      "command": "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"
    }
  }
}

On Windows, the server is kimiko-mcp.exe next to kimiko-app.exe; copy its exact path from Settings → Connections.

Then quit Claude completely and open it again: on a Mac, choose Claude → Quit Claude; on Windows, right-click the Claude icon in the system tray and choose Quit. Closing the window isn’t enough. Kimiko’s tools and prompts then appear in Claude.

Claude Code

On a Mac, run this in a terminal:

claude mcp add --scope user --transport stdio Kimiko -- "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"

--scope user adds Kimiko for every project. Use --scope project to add it to the current project’s .mcp.json instead. claude mcp list shows whether it connected, and /mcp inside a session lists the tools.

Cursor

On a Mac, add the same mcpServers entry as for Claude to ~/.cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Kimiko": {
      "command": "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"
    }
  }
}

VS Code

Add Kimiko to your user mcp.json (~/Library/Application Support/Code/User/mcp.json, or %APPDATA%\Code\User\mcp.json on Windows). On a Mac, the entry is:

{
  "servers": {
    "Kimiko": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Or, on a Mac, add it from a terminal:

code --add-mcp '{"name":"Kimiko","command":"/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp","args":[]}'

ChatGPT and Codex

The ChatGPT desktop app’s Codex threads and the Codex CLI share ~/.codex/config.toml. Kimiko works in Codex, not in regular ChatGPT chats. On a Mac, the entry is:

[mcp_servers.Kimiko]
command = "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"

Or, on a Mac, run:

codex mcp add Kimiko -- "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"

Gemini CLI

On a Mac, this adds Kimiko to ~/.gemini/settings.json:

gemini mcp add -s user Kimiko "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"

Zed

Add a context_servers entry to Zed’s settings file (~/.config/zed/settings.json on a Mac, %APPDATA%\Zed\settings.json on Windows). On a Mac, the entry is:

{
  "context_servers": {
    "Kimiko": {
      "command": "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp",
      "args": []
    }
  }
}

Raycast

In Raycast, run Install MCP Server, choose the Standard Input/Output (stdio) transport, and paste the server’s path as its command. More apps → Raycast → Copy path copies it.

Windsurf and Warp

Both take the same mcpServers entry as Claude. For Windsurf, add it to ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json. For Warp, add it in Warp’s settings under AI, then MCP servers. Copy config in each app’s row copies it. On a Mac, the entry is:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "Kimiko": {
      "command": "/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp"
    }
  }
}

Any other app

Add a local MCP server that uses the stdio transport, named Kimiko, whose command is the server’s path, with no arguments. Turn on Allow AI apps, then, on a Mac, allow Keychain access the first time the app connects (see below).

To test the server from a terminal, run it with --check. The check opens your library without serving anything, and on a Mac it can show the Keychain prompt. On a Mac, run:

"/Applications/Kimiko.app/Contents/MacOS/kimiko-mcp" --check

On Windows, in PowerShell, run & "<path to kimiko-mcp.exe>" --check, with the path from Settings → Connections.

The check prints ok when Kimiko can read your library. It doesn’t check Allow AI apps, which apps still need. If something is wrong, it prints the reason instead, such as a Keychain or database problem.

Apps that can’t connect

AI apps in a web browser, such as claude.ai and ChatGPT on the web, can’t connect. Neither can mobile apps. They connect only to MCP servers on the internet, and Kimiko’s server runs only on your computer, by design.

In the ChatGPT desktop app, Kimiko works in Codex threads, not in regular chats.

The macOS Keychain prompt

Kimiko keeps your library’s encryption key in the macOS Keychain. The first time kimiko-mcp reads it, macOS asks whether it may use your Keychain. Choose Always Allow.

That prompt often opens behind the AI app’s window, and the first connection waits until you answer it. To avoid this, choose Authorize now in the Keychain access row of Settings → Connections before an app first connects. The prompt then opens over Kimiko. While access is on and not yet authorized, the row is in the MCP server card; otherwise it’s under Help.

macOS may ask again after a Kimiko update. If you chose Deny, open Keychain Access, search for app.kimiko.db, remove kimiko-mcp under Access Control, then choose Try again on the row.

Credential Manager on Windows

On Windows, the key is saved in Credential Manager for your Windows account, so there’s no prompt. Check now in the Credential Manager row under Help confirms that apps can read it.

Privacy

Kimiko itself sends nothing online when an AI app uses it. The server answers only the app that started it, and it never connects to the internet. Search uses your search model only when it runs on Ollama or another local server on your computer.

What an app reads is handled by that app and its AI provider. A cloud AI app sends what it reads, including transcript text, to its own model provider, under that app’s terms. An app that runs a local model can keep it on your computer. Local-only mode controls Kimiko’s own connections; it doesn’t stop a connected app from sending what it reads.

Meeting details can include information from your calendar, such as the event title and the people invited, with their names and email addresses. A cloud AI app sends these to its provider like anything else it reads.

Connection history, under Help, shows which apps used Kimiko and when. It keeps only app names, versions, times, counts, and the last tool used, never what was asked. Entries unused for 90 days are cleared.

See privacy and data for what Kimiko keeps and sends.

Meeting content is untrusted

Anyone in a meeting can say words aimed at an AI app, such as “ignore your instructions,” and a shared screen can show them. Summaries made from the meeting can repeat them, and a meeting title from someone else’s calendar invite can carry them too. Kimiko tells the app to treat transcript text, screen text, and summaries as data, never as instructions.

Still review what an app suggests before you act on it. If your app can run tools without asking, keep it asking before create_task and update_task: an edit can rename a task, move it, or clear its details and dates. Kimiko never lets an app delete a task. If you want apps to only read, turn off Allow task changes.

Turn off AI app access

Turn off Allow AI apps in Settings → Connections. Every app loses access at once, and a connected app gets an agent access is off error on its next request.

To remove Kimiko from an app, delete its Kimiko entry from that app’s settings. For Claude Code, run:

claude mcp remove Kimiko

Troubleshooting

Help → Not connecting? in Settings → Connections lists the most common of these fixes.

Problem	Fix
The app says Kimiko failed to start or disconnected, or reports agent access is off	Turn on Allow AI apps, then restart the app. If access was the cause, the app’s log shows agent access is off (for Claude, see its log below; for Claude Code, run claude mcp get Kimiko).
The first connection hangs on a Mac	A Keychain prompt may be hiding behind the app. Choose Always Allow, or use Authorize now first.
Claude Code gives up after 30 seconds	Start it with MCP_TIMEOUT=60000 claude (in PowerShell, $env:MCP_TIMEOUT=60000; claude), or use Authorize now first. claude mcp get Kimiko shows the server’s messages.
Kimiko doesn’t appear in Claude	Quit Claude completely and open it again; closing the window isn’t enough. Its log is ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp-server-Kimiko.log (on Windows, %APPDATA%\Claude\logs\mcp-server-Kimiko.log).
Only eight tools, without create_task or update_task	Turn on Allow task changes, then restart the app (in Claude Code, reconnect Kimiko from /mcp or start a new session).
You moved Kimiko, or the Claude row says Needs an update	Choose Update in the Claude row, then quit and reopen Claude. For other apps, add Kimiko again, or copy its snippet from Settings → Connections again.
Kimiko says Claude’s settings file isn’t valid	Fix the file or remove it, then choose Add to Claude again. In a file you edited by hand, look for a missing comma or a single backslash in a Windows path.
Settings → Connections says part of Kimiko is missing	Reinstall Kimiko.
A search returns nothing	Ask for a wider date range, or another project or type, or ask the app to browse with list_meetings.
A search misses a meeting	Use words that were said in the meeting. Apps search by keyword unless your search model runs on a local server.
The server stops at once and says the database wasn’t found	Open Kimiko once so it can create your library.
Keychain access says Denied	Follow the steps in the macOS Keychain prompt.