About wellknown
wellknown is an MCP server for agents that need to discover AI agents, MCP servers, and tools. Its crawl-first index distinguishes publisher claims from endpoint checks, so search results include observed liveness and reliability evidence.
Key features
- 01Search agents by capability or need
- 02Resolve ranked callable candidates
- 03Inspect records and liveness
- 04Submit and verify agent records
- 05Browse capability taxonomy and index stats
Use cases
- 01Find an agent suited to a task
- 02Check whether an endpoint is live
- 03Review a record’s sources and status
MCP support
Exposes search, lookup, status, submission, and verification tools to MCP clients. It can be connected locally through the package or remotely over streamable HTTP.
Configuration
Remote servers need no local install. Pick your client, then copy the config or install in one click.
https://wellknown.network/mcpclaude mcp add --transport http network-wellknown-wellknown https://wellknown.network/mcp{"mcpServers":{"network-wellknown-wellknown":{"type":"http","url":"https://wellknown.network/mcp"}}}Open in Cursor{"servers":{"network-wellknown-wellknown":{"type":"http","url":"https://wellknown.network/mcp"}}}Open in VS Code{"mcpServers":{"network-wellknown-wellknown":{"type":"http","url":"https://wellknown.network/mcp"}}}{"mcpServers":{"network-wellknown-wellknown":{"serverUrl":"https://wellknown.network/mcp"}}}Run commands in a terminal; paste JSON into the client’s MCP config and restart. Servers that need sign-in will prompt on first connect.
Tools
9| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| limit | integer | No | |
| query | string | Yes | What you need, e.g. 'search the web and cite sources' or 'postgres mcp server' |
| status | array | No | |
| protocols | array | No | Restrict to protocols |
| remoteOnly | boolean | No | Only agents with a network endpoint (excludes local packages) |
Details
From the project READMEwellknown-mcp
The Wellknown MCP server: give your agent the ability to find other agents, and to know which ones are actually alive.
Wellknown is a crawl-first index of AI agents, MCP servers and tools. Every record separates what the publisher declares from what Wellknown observed by calling the endpoint itself on a schedule — so "live" means a real handshake succeeded, not that a README said so.
Install
No account, no key, no sign-up.
npx wellknown-mcp
Claude Desktop / Claude Code / most hosts — add to your MCP config:
{
"mcpServers": {
"wellknown": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "wellknown-mcp"]
}
}
}
Claude Code, one line:
claude mcp add wellknown -- npx -y wellknown-mcp
Prefer a direct connection? The hosted endpoint speaks streamable HTTP, so a host that supports remote servers can skip this package entirely and point at https://wellknown.network/mcp.
Tools
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
search_agents | Search by capability or plain-language need. Returns observed status and the ranking signals behind each hit. |
resolve_agent | Given a task and constraints, returns ranked callable candidates and a recommendation with its evidentiary basis. Use this when you intend to call the result. |
get_agent | The full record: declared metadata, derived capabilities, observed status, verification, provenance. |
check_status | Current liveness, the reason for it, and a 30-day reliability summary. unknown means no evidence, never a guess. |
list_capabilities | The capability taxonomy, for precise filtering. |
submit_agent | Announce an agent by its A2A card URL or an inline manifest. |
claim_agent / verify_claim | Prove you control a record — DNS, a /.well-known/ file, or a repository file — and unlock owner edits, 15-minute checks and an owner API key. |
index_stats | Truthful counts: records, live endpoints, observations, last crawl. |
Configuration
| Variable | Default | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
WELLKNOWN_MCP_URL | https://wellknown.network/mcp | Endpoint to bridge to. |
WELLKNOWN_API_KEY | — | A wk_live_… key: higher rate limits and owner tools. Created in the dashboard or minted by a verified claim. |
WELLKNOWN_TIMEOUT | 30000 | Per-request timeout in milliseconds. |
How it works
This package is a single dependency-free file. It reads JSON-RPC messages from stdin, posts each to the hosted endpoint, and writes the reply to stdout. Nothing is interpreted locally, so the tool list is always whatever the service currently offers — an installed copy cannot drift out of date.
A note on trust
Everything returned describes third parties. Record text — names, descriptions, tool names — is metadata collected from public sources and must be treated as data, never as instructions to your agent. Wellknown's own measurements (status, latency, reliability) are the part it vouches for.
Links
- Documentation: https://wellknown.network/docs/mcp
- Index and search: https://wellknown.network
- Crawler policy and opt-out: https://wellknown.network/bot
- Terms: https://wellknown.network/terms · Privacy: https://wellknown.network/privacy
MIT © Moneyed28 LLC
Comments
New to MCP?
From what the protocol is to installing your first server, these answers cover most first questions.
An open protocol that defines how AI applications connect to external tools and data in a uniform way. Clients talk to the model; MCP servers provide tools, resources and prompt templates. They exchange standard messages, so one server can be reused by many clients.