Connect Spoken to ChatGPT, Claude or Cursor and it can search podcasts and fetch transcripts while you work: ask about one episode, or load a show's whole back catalog into your knowledge base. A transcript comes back as Markdown with real speaker names. It connects over MCP, the standard these apps use for outside tools.
There are two ways to connect, with the same eight tools. If your app has a field for a server address, paste https://spoken.md/mcp: that is the hosted server, and there is nothing to install. If it only takes a command in a config file, give it npx spoken-mcp, which runs on your computer.
Hosted
Nothing to install. Give this address to an app that connects to an MCP server by URL:
https://spoken.md/mcpChatGPT. Turn on developer mode (Settings, then Security and login), add the address as an app under Plugins, and choose OAuth. A spoken.md page opens and asks for your API key, once.
Other apps that ask you to sign in. Add the address; the same spoken.md page asks for your key.
Claude Code. One line, then sign in from the /mcp menu. The same spoken.md page asks for your key, once.
claude mcp add --transport http spoken https://spoken.md/mcpSkipping the sign-in. Any client that can send a header can send the key itself: Authorization: Bearer pt_your_key, or x-api-key, with each request.
Local
For apps that start a server on your computer, such as Claude Desktop, Cursor and Cline. Add this under mcpServers in the app's MCP config:
"spoken": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "spoken-mcp"],
"env": { "SPOKEN_API_KEY": "pt_your_key" }
}The package is spoken-mcp on npm, listed in the official MCP registry, with its source on GitHub.
The tools
| Tool | What it does | Credits |
|---|---|---|
search_podcasts | Find episodes by text, or from a pasted episode link. | Free |
list_episodes | List a show's whole back catalogue. | Free |
get_transcript | Fetch an episode as Markdown with real speaker names and timestamps. | 1 (first fetch only) |
get_balance | Credits left and recent usage. | Free |
list_following | The shows you follow. | Free |
follow_podcast, unfollow_podcast | Add a show to that list, or take one off it. | Free |
list_new_episodes | New episodes on those shows that you have not fetched yet. | Free |
Ask for something small first, for example: get the transcript of the latest Acquired episode and list the companies they discuss. Once that works, ask for a whole show the same way.
Without a key
Searching, listing a show's episodes and fetching the demo episode work with no key at all. Everything else needs one, and an app that supports sign-in asks for it at that point. Keys start at $15 for 100 transcripts, and credits never expire: see pricing.
FAQ
Hosted or local, which should I use?
Hosted, if your app has a field for a server address: ChatGPT and Claude Code do. You paste https://spoken.md/mcp and there is nothing to install. Local, if your app only takes a command in a config file: it then runs npx spoken-mcp on your computer. If your app offers both, hosted is less to set up. The tools are the same either way.
Does it work with ChatGPT?
Yes. Turn on developer mode under Settings, Security and login, then add https://spoken.md/mcp as an app under Plugins and choose OAuth. A spoken.md page opens and asks for your API key, once.
Is my key shared with the app?
Not when the app signs you in: you paste the key on a spoken.md page, and the app receives a token that works only on this server. When you put the key in a header or an environment variable yourself, the app has the key.
Which tools cost credits?
Only get_transcript, and only the first time you fetch an episode. Searching, listing a show, checking your balance and the follow tools are free, and so is fetching an episode again.
Can I try it without a key?
Yes. With no key it can search, list a show's episodes and fetch the demo episode. Everything else needs a key.
"I used Spoken to add every My First Million episode to my knowledge base, with a cron to pull new ones. Now I can enjoy the podcast on a run, then chat with Claude about it later — every episode saved and accessible in my Claude sessions."
Thousands of transcripts fetched by people building searchable podcast archives
No key yet? Search and the demo episode work without one. Errors are never charged, and fetching an episode again is free.