Integration guide

How to connect any MCP server to OpenAI dots

Give your OpenAI dot new tools. Host any stdio MCP server on MCP Nest, add it to ChatGPT as a plugin, and your dot can use it.

MCP Nest Team Published

OpenAI dots are always-on agents in ChatGPT. A dot has its own cloud computer, keeps working while your laptop is off, and uses the plugins installed for your account. Add an MCP server as a ChatGPT plugin and your dot can call its tools.

ChatGPT needs a remote HTTPS endpoint, and most MCP servers are npx or uvx commands that only run locally. MCP Nest hosts them and gives you that endpoint.

This guide gives a dot live Google Flights search. The same steps work for any server.

Before you start

  • A dot. Dots are available on ChatGPT Pro and Business Premium in eligible markets, and in Enterprise or Edu workspaces where an admin has enabled the beta. Create it in the ChatGPT desktop app or a desktop browser.
  • Permission to add a custom MCP server. On Pro, turn on developer mode; Pro allows read-only tools, which covers this example. On Business, only admins can add one. See Developer mode and MCP apps in ChatGPT.
  • An MCP Nest account at mcpnest.dev.

1. Deploy the flights server

In the MCP Nest dashboard, click Create MCP Deployment and set:

  • Package manager: uv
  • Package: flights[mcp]
  • Entrypoint / Command: fli-mcp
  • Transport: stdio

Click Deploy and wait until the deployment shows Active. The server needs no API key. See the Google Flights guide for details.

2. Copy the endpoint

On the deployment, open the OAuth (Claude, Cursor, etc.) tab and copy the Streamable HTTP Endpoint:

https://mcp.mcpnest.dev/mcp/<your-config-id>

Streamable HTTP Endpoint in the MCP Nest dashboard

3. Add it to ChatGPT

  1. Open Plugins in ChatGPT on the web.
  2. Select the plus button, then Add custom MCP server.
  3. Name it MCP Nest, add a description such as Flight search, and paste the endpoint as the server URL.
  4. Choose OAuth, accept the risk warning, and select Create as a plugin.
  5. Approve access on the MCP Nest page that opens.
  6. Install the plugin from your personal plugins.

In a Business, Enterprise, or Edu workspace, an admin creates the app under Workspace settings > Apps > Create and publishes it instead.

ChatGPT lists the discovered tools, including flights__search_flights. OpenAI’s Connect and test your plugin covers the same form.

4. Give your dot the job

Your dot picks up the new plugin automatically. Message it:

Every morning at 8 AM Pacific for the next two weeks, use MCP Nest to find the
cheapest nonstop from SFO to Tokyo on November 20. Message me if the price drops
below $700. Confirm the schedule.

The dot confirms what it saved and runs the check in the background. Review or cancel it under Scheduled in the dot’s profile.

Limit what the dot can do

A dot works without asking each time, so only give it the servers it needs. Use a separate MCP Nest config for your dot, with credentials scoped to the job. See deploying multiple separate configurations.

Hiding a tool in the dashboard shortens the list the dot sees, but a client with an old list can still call it. See how to disable individual MCP tools.

Troubleshooting

ChatGPT can’t connect. The deployment must be Active. Click Refresh in the dashboard, then add the server again.

Authorization loops back to the login page. Sign in to mcpnest.dev in the browser profile ChatGPT opened, then retry.

New tools don’t show up. Open the plugin in ChatGPT Plugins and select Refresh.

A tool call fails. Check the deployment’s Logs page in MCP Nest. A missing API key is the usual cause.

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