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Paper Lantern

Official registry Developer tools

Research intelligence for AI coding agents. 2M+ CS papers with evidence and tradeoffs.

Source code Website Documentation

What can you do with Paper Lantern?

  • 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

Install

Add this to your client's MCP configuration (Claude Desktop: claude_desktop_config.json; Cursor: .cursor/mcp.json; VS Code and others use the same "mcpServers" shape).

Remote (streamable-http)
Claude Code 
claude mcp add --transport http paper-lantern 'https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp'
JSON configuration (Claude Desktop, Cursor, VS Code) 
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "paper-lantern": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp"
        }
    }
}

Documentation

From the project's README on GitHub, refreshed weekly. Links open on GitHub.

Contents
  1. paperlantern
  2. Quick start
  3. Supported agents
  4. What it does
  5. Tools available
  6. When your agent uses Paper Lantern
  7. Links

paperlantern

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:

  1. Authenticates via OAuth (opens browser)
  2. Configures the MCP server for your selected agents
  3. Installs agent rules so your agent knows when to use Paper Lantern

Tools available

Once configured, your agent gets these tools:

ToolWhat it does
explore_approachesSurvey 4-6 approach families with evidence and tradeoffs
deep_diveInvestigate one technique in depth - implementation, hyperparameters, failure modes
compare_approachesSide-by-side comparison of 2-3 candidates
check_feasibilityGO / PROTOTYPE / RECONSIDER verdict given your constraints
give_feedbackTell 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.

Frequently asked questions

What is Paper Lantern?

Research intelligence for AI coding agents. 2M+ CS papers with evidence and tradeoffs.

How do I install Paper Lantern?

It runs as a remote server. In Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http paper-lantern 'https://mcp.paperlantern.ai/chat/mcp'. For other clients, paste the JSON configuration from this page into their MCP settings.

Does Paper Lantern need an API key?

Its registry entry lists no required key or secret. Some features may still need an account with the service it connects to.

Is Paper Lantern open source?

Yes. Its code is on GitHub under the MIT license.

Who maintains Paper Lantern?

It is published by paperlantern-ai. AI.tn lists it but does not maintain or endorse it.

From the official MCP Registry. Listing is not an endorsement: review a server's code and permissions before giving it access to your data.