Anthropic has announced that users can now directly interact with workplace tools inside Claude. The feature is built upon the Model Context Protocol and introduces MCP Apps, allowing interactive interfaces within AI products. Supported applications include Slack, Box, Canva and Figma, among others.
Claude already connected to tools and performed actions on behalf of users. However, this wasn’t an interactive system, but a one-time API call working in the background and reporting back. The new functionality lets users actually interact with those tools directly in the Claude window. You can build project timelines in Asana, draft and send Slack messages with formatted previews, or visualize ideas as diagrams in Figma without switching tabs.
The company introduced the Model Context Protocol (MCP) in November 2024 as an open standard for connecting AI applications to data sources and tools. MCP Apps is a new extension that lets any MCP server deliver an interactive interface within supporting AI products.
The move suggests Anthropic stepping into a crowded field of AI-centred systems. However, rather than integrating a chatbot feature into established platforms, Claude is intended to take this centralized platform and move it to the periphery somewhat. With the Claude chat window becoming more interactive, one can finally imagine an employee spending hours inside it, the chatbot function becoming the effective operating system. We almost hesitate to use the language of an ‘AI OS’ given others are busy defining what that means for their own ends, but Anthropic’s motive are similarly all-encompassing here.
On top of that, it’s become evident that LLMs aren’t really suitable for the ‘computer use’ functionality to the extent that might otherwise have been the case. Instead of AI models being allowed to continuously scan the display’s content for next steps and clicking buttons on behalf of the user, overhead and error rates are hurdles that many won’t want to overcome. The alternative is integration with established workplace apps, such as Slack or Box.
Interactive tools across platforms
The tools themselves are recognizably similar inside the Claude window compared to the application in standalone form. Here are some examples:
Amplitude now lets users build analytics charts and adjust parameters interactively to uncover insights from within Claude. Meanwhile, Asana turns chats into projects, tasks, and timelines a team can execute. Box enables searching files, previewing documents inline, and extracting insights from content. Other apps follow similar functionality, from presentation work in Canva to researching companies through Clay.
One key addition is Slack. The app’s Claude integration can search through and retrieve conversations for context, generates message drafts, formats them, and lets you review before posting. Salesforce integration with Agentforce 360 is coming soon, enabling teams to reason, collaborate, and act from a connected interface.
Built on open standards
The underlying technology relies on MCP, perhaps Anthropic’s crowning AI achievement even beyond Claude itself. It was transferred to the Agentic AI Foundation under the Linux Foundation in December, finalizing the protocol’s move towards being the de facto standard for AI agents. Anthropic open-sourced MCP to give the ecosystem a universal way to connect tools to AI. However, its security pitfalls remain an issue that end users need to counter with additional apps or services.
Anthropic is at least adding to MCP’s functionality, even if securing it is left to others. MCP Apps extends MCP so developers can build interactive UI on top of it. This means the technology works across supporting AI products, not just Claude. The approach addresses what Anthropic calls the “M×N integration problem” by replacing custom connections between apps and data sources with standardized implementations.
The feature is available on web and desktop for Pro, Max, Team, and Enterprise plans. Users can head to claude.ai/directory and connect to apps marked as “interactive” to get started. Support for Claude Cowork is coming soon.