# Connect AI assistants to OwAI with MCP

> Connect an AI assistant to your photo and video library with OwAI MCP. Set up local or remote access, authorize your account, and run your first search.

Updated: 2026-09-18

## What is OwAI MCP?

Organize with AI (OwAI) is a local-first photo and video organizer for macOS, Windows and Linux. Its Model Context Protocol (MCP) server lets compatible AI assistants search indexed media and manage collections, groups, people and duplicate candidates using OwAI tools.

The desktop app is free for local browsing, organization and search with local models. Both local and remote MCP require permanent Cloud Access. Hosted inference and cloud indexing use separate prepaid credits; exact metadata searches and library-management calls do not consume inference credits. Cloud Access is not a subscription.

- [Cloud Access and credit pricing](https://organizewith.ai/en/pricing)

## Prepare your media library

An assistant searches what OwAI has indexed, not every file on your computer. Add the folders you want to use and let indexing finish before judging search results.

1. Install and open OwAI. Add a photo or video folder and choose local or hosted AI processing in App Settings.

2. Connect your OwAI account with Cloud Access. Enable face detection for a folder if you want to search by recognized people, then label those people in OwAI.

3. For local folders over remote MCP, enable Cloud index sync and wait for the initial sync to finish. Local MCP does not require cloud index sync. OneDrive uses the shared cloud catalog; connect it using the OneDrive guide.

- [Download OwAI for desktop](https://organizewith.ai/en/download)
- [Connect OneDrive photos and videos](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/onedrive-photo-video-library)

## Connect ChatGPT

ChatGPT connects to the same authenticated remote MCP endpoint. Use the step-by-step ChatGPT tutorial for the current Plugins setup, OAuth sign-in, a first read-only test, and troubleshooting. No local MCP installation is required for this connection.

- [Connect ChatGPT to your photo library](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/connect-chatgpt)

## Connect Claude or the Gemini app through remote MCP

Add https://index.organizewith.ai/mcp as a remote MCP connector or custom connected app in your assistant. Complete OwAI account sign-in and the permission consent screen, then return to the assistant. A successful sign-in alone is not proof that the connector finished linking.

In Claude, use the remote connector setup. In the Gemini web app, open Settings & help → Connected Apps and add a custom app for Spark. Google's current guide limits custom connected apps to English and Gemini Spark; availability and labels can vary by account and version. This is a remote connection, not the Gemini CLI local integration.

For same-computer file opening, copy the device-specific remote MCP URL from OwAI App Settings → AI assistants, on the computer where you use the assistant. Do not use another computer's device-specific URL as a general cloud connector. The plain endpoint supports remote search and management without enabling local file opening.

- [Claude's official remote connector guide](https://support.claude.com/en/articles/11175166-get-started-with-custom-connectors-using-remote-mcp)
- [Google's official Gemini custom-app guide](https://support.google.com/gemini/answer/17209137)

## Connect Codex, Claude Desktop or Gemini CLI locally

In OwAI, open App Settings → AI assistants and use Connect for a detected local client. OwAI configures its desktop executable with the --mcp argument. Keep the OwAI app running; the connector is a lightweight stdio proxy to that app, not a second indexer or model process.

Restart or refresh the assistant's MCP connection after configuring it or updating OwAI's tool schema. Local MCP searches this computer's library and follows the app's local-versus-hosted inference settings. Choosing a local connector does not force hosted inference off.

For a host without a desktop window, the OwAI CLI package runs the same engine with owai serve and generates its own stdio configuration with owai mcp-config. See the CLI guide for installation and credentials; do not use the desktop --mcp launch command as the CLI setup instructions.

- [Compare local and remote MCP](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/local-vs-remote-mcp)
- [Run OwAI without a desktop window](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/cli-getting-started)
- [CLI reference for agents](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/cli-agent-reference)

## Try a folder-scoped photo search

Ask: Find five beach photos from June through August 2026 in Camera Roll. Replace the example folder and dates with ones in your library. The assistant should pass the folder and dates as structured filters, with only the visual concept in visual_query.

Tool discovery in the connected client is authoritative. Use the exact tool name and input schema it advertises; do not guess a local or remote prefix from the connector's display name.

For text visible inside photos, use the OCR-style query text '<your text>', such as text 'STOP'. This is model-based visual retrieval, not guaranteed exact transcription. See the library-management guide for the complete example and safe deletion workflow.

Tool: `search_media`

```json
{
  "source_name": "Camera Roll",
  "media_type": "image",
  "captured_from": "2026-06-01",
  "captured_to": "2026-08-31",
  "visual_query": "beach",
  "limit": 5
}
```

- [OCR-style search and reviewed changes](https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/manage-media-with-ai#ocr)

## If linking or the first call fails

An invalid_scope response means OAuth permissions were rejected, not that a photo path or the local search index is broken. A permission error on a write tool requires an appropriate OwAI authorization grant; allowing the tool in an assistant's UI does not itself expand the token's permissions.

For an empty remote library, check that the same OwAI account is connected and initial cloud sync completed. For a pending remote command, keep the owning OwAI app running with cloud sync enabled and inspect the command status. Do not report a queued change as completed.

- [Contact OwAI support](mailto:support@organizewith.ai)

HTML: https://organizewith.ai/en/guides/connect-ai-assistants