Auto MCP server
The Auto MCP server lets an AI app work with a user's Auto photos. The user signs in once. After that, the assistant can search their pictures, show them inline, and sort them into albums.
It uses the Model Context Protocol, so it works with Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, VS Code and any other client that supports remote MCP servers.
Connect an AI app
Add Auto to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or VS Code. No code.
Build a client
OAuth discovery, client registration and raw JSON-RPC calls.
Guide for agents
Which tool to call when, and how to show results.
Tool reference
Every tool with its input schema and output.
Server URL
https://app.auto.inc/api/mcp/v1
| Transport | Streamable HTTP. Stateless, JSON responses, no SSE stream. |
| Auth | OAuth 2.1 with PKCE and dynamic client registration. API keys also work. |
| Scope | mcp:images |
| Server name | auto-images ("Auto Pictures") |
What the assistant can do
| Group | Tools |
|---|---|
| Pictures | get_info, list_images, search_images, get_image, get_image_bytes |
| Display | display_image, display_images_grid, display_images_carousel |
| Albums | list_albums, get_album, create_album, add_images_to_album, remove_images_from_album, rename_album, set_album_cover, delete_album |
| Feedback | send_feature_request |
Read tools are marked readOnlyHint, so clients can run them without asking. Album tools change data in Auto. remove_images_from_album and delete_album are marked destructiveHint. No tool deletes a picture.
The display tools return an MCP App. Clients that support MCP Apps show the pictures in a grid, a carousel or a single view inside the chat.
Where the pictures come from
Most users sync their iPhone camera roll with the Auto Photos app. The server reads those pictures, and they support albums, screenshot filters and search on both pixels and text.
Some users took pictures in the original Auto app and have no Auto Photos account. For them the server reads those pictures instead. They have no albums and no screenshots. get_info and every list or search result say which source is in use in an app or source field: auto_photos or auto.
A new user with no pictures gets setup steps from get_info. The assistant shows those steps, and the user installs Auto Photos.
MCP or REST?
| You want to | Use |
|---|---|
| Ask an AI app about your photos | MCP |
| Build an agent that a user signs in to | MCP |
| Run a script or a server job with your own key | REST API |
| Download files or sync to your own storage | REST API |
Both read the same library and follow the same rules.