Use CueClip with Claude and ChatGPT (MCP)
Connect CueClip to Claude Desktop, Claude Code, ChatGPT or Claude on the web, then ask it to import recordings, find hooks and build captioned shorts in plain language.
What it does
CueClip includes an MCP server, the standard way AI assistants use apps. Once connected, you can ask Claude (or ChatGPT) to work in CueClip for you: import a recording, read the transcript, pick the best moments, and build shorts with a hook, captions and zooms. Everything it makes opens in CueClip, where you review and export it.
Your videos never leave your Mac. The assistant only receives the transcript text and project details it asks for.
Set it up in Claude Desktop
- Install Claude Desktop (claude.ai/download) if you don't have it.
- In CueClip, click the Settings (gear) icon in the top bar and choose Connect AI Agents (MCP).
- Turn on Allow assistants.
- Click Install next to Claude Desktop. Claude Desktop opens an install dialog; click Install.
- Start a new chat in Claude and ask: "What's in my CueClip?"
Claude asks before it uses a tool. Choose Always allow for CueClip's tools so you aren't asked every time.
Claude Code, Cursor and other apps
Open Connect AI Agents (MCP) in CueClip, turn on Allow assistants, and click Claude Code, Cursor & others. Copy the command (for Claude Code) or the JSON configuration (for Cursor and other MCP apps) and paste it into that app. These clients need Node.js installed on your Mac.
ChatGPT and Claude on the web
- In CueClip → Connect AI Agents (MCP), click ChatGPT & Claude on the web and turn on Allow remote assistants.
- Copy the server address shown there (https://api.cueclip.app/api/mcp).
- In ChatGPT, open Settings → Connectors and create a connector with that address. In Claude, open Settings → Connectors and add a custom connector.
- When the sign-in page asks for a pairing code, click Get code in CueClip and type it in. Codes work once and last 10 minutes.
CueClip must be open on your Mac for remote assistants to do anything. Turning Allow remote assistants off disconnects every assistant; they need a new pairing code to reconnect.
What you can ask
| Task | Try asking |
|---|---|
| Import a recording | Import this Zoom recording: <link> (passcode: …) |
| Find the best moments | What are the best hook lines in my last recording? |
| Make shorts | Turn it into 3 vertical shorts with hooks, bold captions and camera zooms. |
| Layout | Put the camera on top and the screen below. |
| Look | Use a light gradient background and a circle camera. |
| Captions | Move the captions to the upper third and make them highlight the spoken word. |
| Zooms and text | Add a zoom when I click Settings, and a lower third with my name. |
| Clean up | Run Auto Edit with tighter pauses. |
| Fix the transcript | It keeps writing "cue clip" — fix it to CueClip and remember it. |
| Trim, rename, delete | Start that short 2 seconds later and call it "Pricing tip". |
| Export | Export all three shorts in 1080p. |
| Subtitles | Export Spanish subtitles for this short. |
| Titles and chapters | Write YouTube titles, a description and chapters, and save them to the project. |
| Search | Where did I talk about pricing across all my projects? |
When Claude is about to create several shorts, it shows you its picks (start and end, hook line, why it works) first, so you can adjust them.
What you can import
| Source | How |
|---|---|
| A file on your Mac | Give the full path, like /Users/you/Downloads/call.mp4. |
| Zoom cloud recording | Paste the share link, plus the passcode if it has one. CueClip downloads it for you. |
| Direct video link | Any link that ends in .mp4 or .mov, and Dropbox links. |
| Separate screen and camera files | Give both paths; CueClip lines them up and combines them. |
| YouTube and other video sites | Off by default. Turn on Allow YouTube and other video sites in Connect AI Agents (MCP), for videos you have the rights to. |
CueClip checks how each recording was made. A Zoom call with a shared screen and a camera tile is split into a screen video plus a camera layer, so layouts and camera zooms work as if you had recorded them separately.
Undo and safety
- Say "undo that": the last 10 changes Claude made to a project can be undone, one at a time.
- Projects are only deleted when you ask, after Claude confirms which one, and they go to the Trash.
- Exports use your CueClip license or export codes, the same as the Export button.
Does it use my AI credits?
| Done by | Uses CueClip credits? |
|---|---|
| Claude: finding hooks and highlights, writing titles, descriptions and chapters, translating subtitles, choosing cuts and zooms | No. Your Claude or ChatGPT plan covers it. |
| CueClip: transcribing an import | Yes, unless you transcribe on your Mac with a local Whisper model. |
| CueClip: Auto Edit | Only retake detection. Filler words and pauses are found on your Mac. |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| "Unable to connect to extension server" | Make sure Allow assistants is on in Connect AI Agents (MCP), then disable and re-enable the CueClip extension in Claude Desktop (Settings → Extensions). |
| Claude doesn't see new features | Click Install next to Claude Desktop again after updating CueClip, then start a new chat. |
| A YouTube link is refused | Video sites are off by default. Download your own video (YouTube Studio → Download) and give Claude the file, or turn video sites on. |
| A Zoom link won't download | Check the passcode, and that the recording is shared publicly. Otherwise download it from Zoom and import the file. |
| ChatGPT says CueClip isn't reachable | Open CueClip and check that Allow remote assistants is on (Connect AI Agents (MCP) → ChatGPT & Claude on the web). |
Questions
What is MCP?
The Model Context Protocol, an open standard that lets AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT use apps on your behalf.
Can the assistant see my videos?
No. Videos stay on your Mac. It reads transcript text and project details, and sees one preview frame after splitting a Zoom recording.
Do I need a CueClip license?
Editing works on every plan. Exporting needs a license or an export code, as in the app.