Connect Brinn to Claude Desktop
Brinn's official MCP connector gives Claude Desktop real-time, read-only access to your personal knowledge graph. Setup takes under two minutes.
What this does
Once connected, Claude can query your Brinn vault to answer questions about your notes, past decisions, and knowledge graph. Instead of relying solely on its training data, Claude retrieves relevant context from your personal knowledge on demand.
Example queries you can ask Claude after connecting: "What did I decide about the API architecture last month?" or "Summarise my notes on machine learning from the past year."
What you need
- A Brinn account (free tier is sufficient)
- Claude Desktop 0.7 or later (download from claude.ai)
- macOS or Windows (Linux support in progress)
Setup steps
- 1
Create or log in to your Brinn account
Go to brinn.app and sign up or log in. Complete the onboarding flow to initialise your personal knowledge graph.
- 2
Generate an API key
In the Brinn web app, navigate to Settings → Integrations. Click 'Generate API key' under the MCP section. Copy the key — you will not see it again after closing the modal.
- 3
Install Claude Desktop
Download and install Claude Desktop from claude.ai. Sign in with your Anthropic account. Claude Desktop 0.7 or later supports MCP connectors.
- 4
Locate the Claude Desktop config file
On macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json. On Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json. Create the file if it does not exist.
- 5
Add the Brinn MCP server entry
Add a "brinn" entry to the "mcpServers" object in the config file. Use your API key from Step 2 as the value for the BRINN_API_KEY environment variable (see config snippet below).
- 6
Restart Claude Desktop
Quit Claude Desktop completely and reopen it. The Brinn connector icon will appear in the toolbar, indicating that your knowledge graph is connected.
Config file snippet
Add the brinn entry to the mcpServers object. Replace YOUR_API_KEY with the key from Brinn Settings → Integrations.
{
"mcpServers": {
"brinn": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@brinn/mcp-server"],
"env": {
"BRINN_API_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY"
}
}
}
}What Claude can access
The connector is read-only. Claude can retrieve data from your vault but cannot create, edit, or delete notes.
Authentication
The connector authenticates using a personal API key generated in Brinn Settings → Integrations. Keys are scoped to your account and grant read-only access to your vault. You can generate multiple keys (e.g. one per integration) and revoke any key independently. Revoking a key immediately cuts off access on the next Claude request.
Privacy & security
- • The MCP server runs locally on your machine — no data is sent to third-party servers except Claude's context window
- • Data is retrieved on demand only when you ask Claude a question that requires it
- • Your Brinn vault remains AES-256 encrypted; the API decrypts only the specific content requested
- • API keys are stored only in your local config file — Brinn's servers never see them after initial generation
Troubleshooting
The Brinn connector icon does not appear in Claude Desktop
Ensure you restarted Claude Desktop after editing the config file. Check that the JSON syntax is valid (use a JSON validator). Verify the config file is saved at the correct path for your OS.
Claude says it cannot access my Brinn data
Confirm your API key is still active in Brinn Settings → Integrations. API keys can be revoked accidentally. Generate a new key and update the config file.
The connector connects but returns no results
Ensure you have at least one note saved in your Brinn vault. New accounts with empty vaults return no results by design. Save a few notes and try querying again.
Still stuck? Email support.brinn@opstintechnologies.com.
Frequently asked questions
Which Claude Desktop versions support MCP?
Claude Desktop 0.7 and later supports MCP connectors. Ensure you are running the latest version from claude.ai.
Does the MCP connector work with the Claude API (not Desktop)?
The current connector is designed for Claude Desktop. API-level MCP access for developers building their own AI applications is on the Brinn roadmap. Check this page for updates.
How do I revoke Claude's access to my knowledge graph?
Go to Brinn Settings → Integrations and delete or regenerate your API key. Revocation is immediate — Claude will no longer be able to query your vault on the next request.
Is my data sent to Anthropic?
Data from your Brinn vault is retrieved on demand when you ask Claude a question that requires it. Claude processes the retrieved context to generate a response. Anthropic's standard data handling policies apply to this context. No data is sent proactively or stored by Brinn beyond your own vault.
Can multiple AI tools connect to the same Brinn account?
Yes. You can generate separate API keys for different integrations. Each key has independent access and can be revoked separately.