About Paper Lantern
Paper Lantern gives coding agents access to research papers and configures them with a single command. It is for developers seeking research-backed methods, tradeoffs, and implementation guidance when making technical decisions.
Key features
- 01Configures multiple coding agents
- 02Browser-based OAuth authentication
- 03Installs agent rules
- 04Explores and compares approaches
- 05Assesses approach feasibility
Use cases
- 01Compare algorithm or architecture options
- 02Investigate a technique and its failure modes
- 03Assess feasibility under specific constraints
MCP support
The setup CLI configures an MCP server for selected agents and installs agent rules. A raw MCP endpoint is also available for manual setup.
Configuration
Remote servers need no local install. Pick your client, then copy the config or install in one click.
https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcpclaude mcp add --transport http paperlantern-cli https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp{"mcpServers":{"paperlantern-cli":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp"}}}Open in Cursor{"servers":{"paperlantern-cli":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp"}}}Open in VS Code{"mcpServers":{"paperlantern-cli":{"type":"http","url":"https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp"}}}{"mcpServers":{"paperlantern-cli":{"serverUrl":"https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/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
Details
From the project READMEpaperlantern
Research intelligence that makes your AI coding agent smarter - one command setup.
Paper Lantern gives your AI coding agent access to 2M+ CS research papers - the right technique for your problem, with tradeoffs, benchmarks, and implementation guidance.
Quick start
npx paperlantern@latest
That's it. Pick your agents, log in, and Paper Lantern is configured.
Supported agents
- Claude Code
- Cursor
- Windsurf
- GitHub Copilot (VS Code)
- Codex
- Gemini CLI
- Cline
Prefer to set up manually, or using a client not listed above? See paperlantern.ai/docs for per-agent config snippets and the raw MCP endpoint.
What it does
The setup CLI:
- Authenticates via OAuth (opens browser)
- Configures the MCP server for your selected agents
- Installs agent rules so your agent knows when to use Paper Lantern
Tools available
Once configured, your agent gets these tools:
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
explore_approaches | Survey 4-6 approach families with evidence and tradeoffs |
deep_dive | Investigate one technique in depth - implementation, hyperparameters, failure modes |
compare_approaches | Side-by-side comparison of 2-3 candidates |
check_feasibility | GO / PROTOTYPE / RECONSIDER verdict given your constraints |
give_feedback | Tell us what helped and what didn't |
When your agent uses Paper Lantern
Paper Lantern activates when your agent is making technical decisions where research evidence could improve the outcome - choosing between algorithms, architectures, or techniques.
It does not activate for syntax questions, library lookups, debugging, or general programming tasks.
Links
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.