MCP setup

Updated

Once you have your AI tool installed, use this guide to connect Giftronaut MCP to your AI tool.

What this setup does

MCP, or Model Context Protocol, is a secure way for AI assistants to connect to external tools. Giftronaut MCP gives your AI assistant access to approved Giftronaut tools, so it can help with gifting tasks directly from your conversation.

No custom integration code is required. You add the Giftronaut MCP server to your AI client, sign in through your browser, and approve access.

What you need

  • A Giftronaut developer account - Sign up with your current Giftronaut account credentials. 
  • Permission to connect third-party or AI tools for your organization
  • An MCP-compatible AI client
  • At least one active app created in your developer portal.

 

How to set it up

Add the Giftronaut MCP server URL

Use this server URL when your AI client asks for the remote MCP server:

https://api.giftronaut.com/api/v1/mcp

Important: Do not add an Authorization header. Giftronaut MCP uses browser-based sign-in and OAuth automatically. Adding a static bearer token can prevent the normal sign-in flow from working correctly.

Option 1: Ask your AI assistant to install it

If your AI assistant can read setup instructions and update its own MCP configuration, copy and paste this prompt:

Please install yourself as a Giftronaut MCP client.

Read the following file and follow its Standard auto-flow exactly:
https://api.giftronaut.com/docs/md/mcp/agent-install.md

Server URL: https://api.giftronaut.com/api/v1/mcp
Add it to your MCP client config. Do not add an Authorization header because OAuth is automatic. Then make a read-only tool call to trigger browser sign-in.

The assistant should add the server to its MCP configuration, trigger the sign-in flow, and guide you through approving access.

Option 2: Add Giftronaut MCP manually

The exact steps depend on your AI client, but most setups follow the same pattern:

  1. Open your AI client’s settings or MCP configuration.
  2. Add a new MCP server named giftronaut.
  3. Enter the server URL: https://api.giftronaut.com/api/v1/mcp.
  4. Save the configuration.
  5. Restart or refresh your AI client if it does not load new tools automatically.
  6. Ask a read-only question, such as “Check our Giftronaut balance,” to trigger browser sign-in.
  7. Sign in to Giftronaut and approve access.

After approval, your AI client should be able to see Giftronaut tools.

 

What happens during sign-in

When your AI client first calls Giftronaut MCP, Giftronaut opens a browser-based sign-in flow. Sign in to your Giftronaut developer account. Depending on your setup, you’ll see one of two screens:

  • “Authorization unavailable” — You don’t have an active app yet. Click Create one to set up a new app.
  • “Authorize [tool name]” — Select the app you want to use, then click Authorize access.

The AI assistant does not need your REST API client credentials pasted into the chat. The connection is handled through the secure sign-in flow.

Confirming your connection

Start with read-only prompts to confirm the connection is working:

Prompt What it does
“Check our current Giftronaut balance.” Retrieves your available balance.
“List our most recent orders.” Shows recent order history.
“Search for Amazon gift cards.” Searches the branded gift card catalog.
“Show our recipient groups.” Lists saved recipient groups.

If these prompts work, your setup is connected.

 

What you can do

Once connected, you can use natural language to interact with your Giftronaut account. 

1. Send gift cards — branded cards (a specific brand like Amazon or Starbucks), choice cards (the recipient picks their own brand), or reward links

  • Draft a $50 Amazon gift card to tony@example.com with the message "Welcome to the team, Tony! We're so glad you're here." and show me the details before sending.
  • Send a $50 choice card to everyone in my "Q2 Top Performers" group with the message "Great work this quarter — this one's on us."
  • Schedule a $75 Choice Card for everyone in the ‘New Hires’ group to send next Friday at 10 AM.

2. Manage orders — view order history, check delivery status, resend a bounced email, or cancel a scheduled order

  • Show me all orders I sent in the last 30 days and summarize them in a table.
  • Show me the full details for order OT2026060100001.
  • Find any orders from this month that have failed and resend them.

3. Check balance and transactions — view your available balance, recent transactions, and request an ACH top-up

  • What's my current balance?
  • Show me recent transactions and summarize total spend by week.
  • Request a $500 ACH top-up. Ask me for any required billing details.

4. Browse the catalog — search for brands by name, country, or category

  • Show me popular restaurant gift cards available in Australia.
  • What denominations does the Amazon US gift card support?
  • What gift card options can I send to someone in France?

5. Manage recipients — add individuals, update details, look up existing recipients, or import a list from a CSV file

  • Update Marcus's email address to marcus.new@example.com.
  • Add Dana from the Marketing team to my recipients. Her email is dana@example.com.
  • I have a CSV file with new employee names and emails. Can you preview the import before adding them?

6. Organize into groups — create and manage recipient groups for easy bulk sending

  • Show me everyone in the ‘Q2 Top Performers’ group.
  • Create a group called ‘Webinar Attendees’ and add the recipients from this CSV.
  • Remove David from the ‘Q2 Top Performers’ group, but keep him in my recipient list.

7. Run campaigns — create and edit reusable sending templates 

  • Create a new campaign called "Monthly Performance Bonus": $75 choice card, sender name "Giftronaut", subject "Your monthly bonus is here!", message "You earned it. Pick something great."
  • Prepare the ‘Q2 Recognition’ campaign for the ‘Top Performers’ group and show me a summary before sending.
  • Update the ‘Monthly Performance Bonus’ campaign amount from $75 to $100.

8. Customize email templates — manage the branded email template your recipients receive

  • Show me which templates are available before I create a campaign.
  • Show me the colors and message in my default email template.
  • Create a new email template called ‘Holiday Thanks’ with sender name ‘Team Giftronaut’ and message ‘Thank you for a great year.'

 

FAQs

Do I need to be a developer to use Giftronaut MCP?
No. Most users can connect to Giftronaut MCP through an MCP-compatible AI client and use natural-language prompts.

Can I use REST API client credentials for MCP?
No. Giftronaut MCP uses browser-based sign-in. REST API client credentials are still used for REST API workflows, but MCP requires the OAuth sign-in flow.

What should I try first?
Start with read-only prompts, such as checking your balance, listing recent orders, or searching the catalog.

Can the AI assistant send gift cards?
Yes, if your connected AppClient has the required permissions. For safety, ask the assistant to create a draft or preview before sending.

Where can I see MCP activity?
MCP tool calls are logged alongside your Giftronaut API activity in the request log dashboard.

 

Need help?

If something isn’t working or you have questions, contact us at support@giftronaut.com.

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