The key value of MCP is bringing together multiple tools, LLMs, and data sources, allowing autonomous agents to provide answers and solutions to real-world problems. The ease of discoverability of these resources in near real time is another challenge. Google solved the problem of locating information on the web 25 years ago through its indexing and PageRank algorithm. As users flocked to the search engine, website owners optimized their content for greater visibility, bending much of the web to Google’s algorithm. MCP servers are at the heart of this agentic AI transformation, and various initiatives are underway to catalog and provide access to them. MCP.so currently lists and offers connections to over 4,800 MCP servers with the number growing daily.
Another potential challenge lies with the MCP standard forking into a more proprietary format through corporate capture. Microsoft tried to colonize the web in the 1990s through the Internet Explorer browser and use of its VBScript and Jscript scripting languages. Although ultimately unsuccessful, it could have derailed the explosion of digital innovation of the last 30 years.
The greater good
Despite these challenges, there’s a positive future for MCP. The dynamic developer communities sharing information and best practices provide a strong foundation for experimentation and innovation. The more recent entry of tech giants in providing solutions to extend MCP’s potential beyond the desktop and across external networks should encourage CIOs to explore the standard’s potential for their organization.