nao can act as an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, letting external AI clients — Claude, Cursor, Codex, and others — connect directly to your analytics agent. Once enabled, those clients can ask analytics questions, run SQL, browse your context files, and manage stories, all without leaving their own chat interface.Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getnao.io/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
Enable and configure the MCP endpoint from Settings -> MCP Endpoint. For step-by-step client setup, see Configure nao MCP endpoint in the admin guide.
Modes
Three modes control which capabilities are exposed. Enable only the modes your use case needs.| Mode | What it exposes |
|---|---|
| Sub-agent mode | ask_nao — sends a question to the nao agent and streams the answer back. Use this when you want an external agent to delegate analytics questions to nao. |
| Context-layer mode | execute_sql, build_chart, grep, ls — lets the external agent browse your context files and run queries directly. Use this for tighter integration where the external agent drives the tool calls itself. |
| Story mode | Story CRUD — create, read, update, archive, and delete nao stories. Useful for migrating from other BI tools or building automations around stories. |
Authentication
nao uses Bearer token authentication. Your token is shown on the MCP Endpoint settings page. Include it in requests:Available tools
The tools available to a connected client depend on the modes you have enabled.ask_nao
ask_nao
Sends a natural language question to the nao agent and streams the response.
- Requires Sub-agent mode.
- Streams progress as the agent reasons and calls tools.
- Returns the final answer including any charts or SQL outputs.
execute_sql
execute_sql
Runs a SQL query against your connected data warehouse and returns results.
- Requires Context-layer mode.
build_chart
build_chart
Creates a chart from SQL results.
- Requires Context-layer mode.
grep
grep
Searches text patterns across your nao context files.
- Requires Context-layer mode.
ls
ls
Lists files and directories in your nao context.
- Requires Context-layer mode.
Story tools
Story tools
Full CRUD for nao stories: list, get, create, update, archive, delete.
- Requires Story mode.
What’s next
Configure nao MCP endpoint
Step-by-step config for Cursor, Codex, Claude Code, Claude Desktop, and CLI
Chat capabilities
Explore what the nao agent can do natively in chat