MCP Client & Aggregation
Beyond acting as an MCP server, Shortcuts Toolbox can also connect to other MCP servers as a client. This means the AI chat and AI tasks can use tools from external MCP servers in addition to your local shortcuts.
Connecting External Servers
Navigate to Settings → MCP Client and add your external MCP server configurations:
{
"mcpServers": {
"my-external-server": {
"type": "sse",
"url": "http://example.com/mcp",
"enabled": true
},
"local-stdio-server": {
"type": "stdio",
"command": "node",
"args": ["./my-server.js"],
"enabled": true
}
}
}
Supported Client Transport Types
stdiosseremoteMCP Aggregation
Shortcuts Toolbox acts as an MCP aggregator — similar to Docker’s MCP Toolkit gateway feature. When you connect external MCP servers as clients, their tools are automatically aggregated and exposed through the Shortcuts Toolbox MCP server.
This means external AI clients (like Claude Desktop or Cursor) connecting to Shortcuts Toolbox get access to:
- All your Apple Shortcuts (as MCP tools)
- All tools from any connected external MCP servers
- Built-in Shortcuts Toolbox tools (scheduling, AI tasks, etc.) — see Available MCP Tools
Think of it as a single MCP endpoint that unifies all your automation tools in one place. Configure one connection in Claude Desktop, get access to everything.