When to use API vs MCP

In short

• using the API is for human developers who need to integrate MadKudu with a service

• using the MCP is for LLMs and AI Agents

What is the difference between API and MCP

MCP is a new protocol to connect to AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, Dust, or your own GPT agents.

• Your AI agent sends a natural language query like: “Give me a brief about Walmart"

• The MCP server translates that into API calls to MadKudu

• We send back structured responses the AI can use to take action or reply

In short, the MCP is just a AI-tool-friendly way to interact with the API.

When to use API and MCP

API Integration

Perfect for developers or systems that want to call specific endpoints (like "get account info") using standard REST calls.

• You authenticate with API credentials

• You get a structured JSON response from your request to the API endpoint

MCP (Model Context Protocol) Integration

Perfect for AI Agents and users of AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor, Dust, or your own GPT agents.