Ad Library MCP: How to Connect 200M+ Ads to Claude, ChatGPT, and Any AI Tool

The problem isn't the AI. It's the context the AI has access to. And that's exactly what an ad library MCP fixes.

In this guide we'll cover what an ad library MCP is, why it matters for advertisers and agencies, and how to connect the Foreplay MCP — which gives any AI tool direct access to over 200,000,000 ads — to Claude, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Cursor, and more.

What is an MCP?

MCP stands for Model Context Protocol. It's a standard way for AI tools to connect to outside apps and data sources.

Without it, you're stuck pasting screenshots, dropping in links, and hoping the model understands. With an MCP connection, your AI talks to the data source directly — pulling exactly what it needs, in real time.

If you've heard the term "MCP server" thrown around, that's all a server is: a service that exposes some data or capability to AI tools through this protocol. There are MCP servers for databases, design tools, project management — and now for ad libraries.

What is an ad library MCP?

An ad library MCP is an MCP server that connects your AI tool to a database of advertising creative. Instead of your AI guessing what good ads look like, it can query a live ad library and work from what brands are actually running right now.

The Foreplay MCP is an ad library MCP that connects your AI to Foreplay's database of 200M+ ads across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn and more — plus your own saved boards and swipe files.

For every ad, your AI can pull:

• The creative (video or image)
• The ad copy
• The CTA
• The landing page URL
• Whether the ad is currently active
• How long the ad has been running

That last data point is the one most people overlook. Anyone can launch 20 ads in a week — that doesn't mean any of them work. But an ad that's been running for months is a strong signal that the brand found something profitable worth keeping live. An ad library MCP lets your AI prioritize those long-running winners instead of scrolling ad libraries at random.

Why advertisers and agencies are connecting ads to AI

Connecting an ad library to your AI tool collapses the slowest part of creative strategy — the research — from hours into minutes. Two use cases come up again and again.

1. Brands: turn live research into a creative testing matrix

Instead of generic ideas, you get concepts grounded in what the market is already proving. A prompt like this does the work:

"Use Foreplay to research active and long-running ads in the project management software category. Group the strongest examples by hook, offer, CTA, format, landing page angle, and audience pain point. Then turn the findings into a creative testing matrix with 10 new ad concepts we can produce this month. Create this as an interactive artifact that's on-brand and beautifully designed."

You get a structured matrix — concept, market signal, hook, format, offer, CTA, production notes — instead of a vague "make a video about saving time."

2. Agencies: build client-ready competitive intelligence reports

Agencies don't just need ideas; they need to explain the market to a client and justify their recommendations. An ad library MCP turns raw research into a deliverable:

"Use Foreplay to analyze these five competitors for this client. Pull their active ads, longest-running ads, hooks, offers, formats, CTAs, and landing page URLs. Then create a client-ready competitive intelligence report as an interactive artifact, including patterns, opportunities, and recommended creative tests for next quarter."

From there you can ask it to surface whitespace — maybe every competitor uses founder-led video but nobody uses customer proof, or everyone pushes a discount but nobody sells speed. That point of view is the deliverable, and it beats a boring spreadsheet of ad links every time.

How to connect the Foreplay ad library MCP

The Foreplay MCP uses a single server URL that works across every tool:

public.api.foreplay.co/mcp

Connect Foreplay to Claude

Open Claude → Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector.

Name it Foreplay, paste the URL above, click Add, then sign in to your Foreplay account and approve.

Full guide: Connect Foreplay to Claude.

Connect Foreplay to ChatGPT

In ChatGPT, open Settings → Apps → Advanced and enable Developer mode.

Create a custom app named Foreplay, paste the same URL, click Create, and sign in.

Full guide: Connect Foreplay to ChatGPT.

Connect Foreplay to Perplexity

In Perplexity, open Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector,

Name it Foreplay, paste the URL, and authenticate.

Full guide: Connect Foreplay to Perplexity.

Connect Foreplay to Cursor, Codex & Claude Code

Any MCP-compatible coding tool can connect using the same URL. In Claude Code, for example:

claude mcp add --transport http foreplay https://public.api.foreplay.co/mcp

Full guide: Connect Foreplay to coding tools.

Automate it: weekly creative intelligence on autopilot

The real unlock is making this recurring. Using Routines in Claude (or Automations in other tools), you can set up a standing workflow:

"Every Monday, review new and long-running ads from our top competitors in Foreplay, summarize what changed, and update our creative testing matrix with five recommended tests for the week."

For a brand, that means your creative strategy starts with real market data every single week — not just at the start of a quarter. For an agency, it's a repeatable, sellable deliverable.

Keep a human in the loop

One caution: don't treat AI as the creative strategist by itself. AI is excellent at finding patterns, summarizing examples, and turning research into structure. But your taste — and your knowledge of the customer, the offer, and the brand — matters more than ever. The best workflow is simple: Foreplay brings the data, your AI organizes the patterns, and you decide which ideas actually fit.

Frequently asked questions

What is an ad library MCP?An ad library MCP is a Model Context Protocol server that connects an AI tool (like Claude or ChatGPT) directly to a database of advertising creative, so the AI can research real, live ads instead of guessing.‍

Is the Foreplay MCP free?The MCP connects to your Foreplay account, so access follows your Foreplay plan. See Foreplay pricing.‍

Which AI tools support the Foreplay MCP?Any MCP-compatible tool — including Claude, ChatGPT, Perplexity, Cursor, Codex, and Claude Code.‍

What data can the AI access?For each ad: the creative, copy, CTA, landing page URL, active/inactive status, and how long it has been running — across 200M+ ads on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn and more, plus your own boards and swipe files.‍

How do I connect ads to Claude or ChatGPT?Add a custom connector (Claude/Perplexity) or a custom app in Developer mode (ChatGPT) using the server URL public.api.foreplay.co/mcp, then sign in to Foreplay.