How to integrate Ably MCP with Claude Agent SDK

This guide walks you through connecting Ably to the Claude Agent SDK using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working Ably agent that can list all active channels and their details, get message history from 'support-chat' channel, show presence history for 'live-event' channel through natural language commands. This guide will help you understand how to give your Claude Agent SDK agent real control over a Ably account through Composio's Ably MCP server. Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

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Ably

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Ably is a real-time messaging platform for live chat and data sync in modern apps. It offers global scale and rock-solid reliability for seamless, instant experiences.

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Introduction

This guide will help you understand how to give your Claude Agent SDK agent real control over a Ably account through Composio's Ably MCP server.

Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

Also integrate Ably with

OpenAI Agents SDK Claude Code Claude Cowork Codex OpenClaw Hermes CLI Google ADK LangChain Vercel AI SDK Mastra AI LlamaIndex CrewAI

TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:

Get and set up your Claude/Anthropic and Composio API keys
Install the necessary dependencies
Initialize Composio and create a Tool Router session for Ably
Configure an AI agent that can use Ably as a tool
Run a live chat session where you can ask the agent to perform Ably operations

What is Claude Agent SDK?

The Claude Agent SDK is Anthropic's official framework for building AI agents powered by Claude. It provides a streamlined interface for creating agents with MCP tool support and conversation management.

Key features include:

Native MCP Support: Built-in support for Model Context Protocol servers
Permission Modes: Control tool execution permissions
Streaming Responses: Real-time response streaming for interactive applications
Context Manager: Clean async context management for sessions

What is the Ably MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Ably MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your Ably account. It provides structured and secure access to your real-time messaging infrastructure, so your agent can manage channels, monitor presence, analyze usage, and handle messaging workflows for your applications.

Channel management and creation: Seamlessly create, initialize, or retrieve real-time messaging channels so your agent can orchestrate chat, data sync, and collaboration features on demand.
Presence tracking and analytics: Ask your agent to query current presence states or review historical presence data across multiple channels, gaining insights into user activity and engagement patterns.
Message history and audit: Retrieve detailed message histories from any channel, enabling your agent to audit communication, recover missed messages, or analyze message flows for debugging and compliance.
Push notification subscription management: Let your agent list, manage, or unsubscribe devices from push notification channels, ensuring targeted and controlled delivery of real-time alerts to clients.
Application statistics and monitoring: Have your agent fetch in-depth usage metrics—like message counts, channel activity, and API request stats—so you can monitor health, optimize performance, and manage resources with confidence.

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Composio SDK?

Composio's Composio SDK helps agents find the right tools for a task at runtime. You can plug in multiple toolkits (like Gmail, HubSpot, and GitHub), and the agent will identify the relevant app and action to complete multi-step workflows. This can reduce token usage and improve the reliability of tool calls. Read more here: Getting started with Composio SDK

The tool router generates a secure MCP URL that your agents can access to perform actions.

How the Composio SDK works

The Composio SDK follows a three-phase workflow:

Discovery: Searches for tools matching your task and returns relevant toolkits with their details.
Authentication: Checks for active connections. If missing, creates an auth config and returns a connection URL via Auth Link.
Execution: Executes the action using the authenticated connection.

Step-by-step Guide

Step by step09 STEPS

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

Composio API Key and Claude/Anthropic API Key
Primary know-how of Claude Agents SDK
A Ably account
Some knowledge of Python

Getting API Keys for Claude/Anthropic and Composio

Claude/Anthropic API Key

Go to the Anthropic Console and create an API key. You'll need credits to use the models.
Keep the API key safe.

Composio API Key

Log in to the Composio dashboard.
Navigate to your API settings and generate a new API key.
Store this key securely as you'll need it for authentication.

Install dependencies

npm install @anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk @composio/core dotenv

Install the Composio SDK and the Claude Agents SDK.

What's happening:

@composio/core provides Composio integration for Anthropic
@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk is the core agent framework
dotenv/config loads environment variables

Set up environment variables

bash

COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your_composio_api_key_here
USER_ID=your_user_id_here
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=your_anthropic_api_key_here

Create a .env file in your project root.

What's happening:

COMPOSIO_API_KEY authenticates with Composio
USER_ID identifies the user for session management
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY authenticates with Anthropic/Claude

Import dependencies

import 'dotenv/config';
import readline from 'node:readline';
import { Composio } from '@composio/core';
import { query, type Options } from "@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk";

dotenv.config();

What's happening:

We're importing all necessary libraries including the Claude Agent SDK and Composio
The dotenv.config() function loads environment variables from your .env file
This setup prepares the foundation for connecting Claude with Ably functionality

Create a Composio instance and Tool Router session

async function chat() {
  const { COMPOSIO_API_KEY, USER_ID } = process.env;
  if (!COMPOSIO_API_KEY || !USER_ID) {
    throw new Error('COMPOSIO_API_KEY and USER_ID required in .env');
  }

  const composio = new Composio({ apiKey: COMPOSIO_API_KEY });

  // Create Tool Router session for Ably
  const session = await composio.create(USER_ID, {
    toolkits: ['ably'],
  });
  const mcpUrl = session?.mcp.url;

What's happening:

The function checks for the required COMPOSIO_API_KEY environment variable
We're creating a Composio instance using our API key
The create method creates a Tool Router session for Ably
The returned url is the MCP server URL that your agent will use

Configure Claude Agent with MCP

const options: Options = {
  permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions',
  mcpServers: {
    composio: {
      type: 'http',
      url: mcpUrl,
      headers: { 'x-api-key': COMPOSIO_API_KEY }
    }
  },
  systemPrompt: 'You are a helpful assistant with access to Ably tools via Composio.',
  maxTurns: 10,
};

What's happening:

We're configuring the Claude Agent options with the MCP server URL
permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions' allows the agent to execute operations without asking for permission each time
The system prompt instructs the agent that it has access to Ably
maxTurns: 10 limits the conversation length to prevent excessive API usage

Create client and start chat loop

const rl = readline.createInterface({
    input: process.stdin,
    output: process.stdout,
    prompt: 'You: '
  });

  console.log('\nChat started. Type "exit" to quit.\n');

  let isProcessing = false;

  async function ask(prompt: string) {
    isProcessing = true;
    rl.pause();

    process.stdout.write('Claude is thinking...');
    const stream = query({ prompt, options });

    let firstChunk = true;
    for await (const msg of stream) {
      const content = (msg as any).message?.content || (msg as any).content;
      if (Array.isArray(content)) {
        for (const block of content) {
          if (block.type === 'text' && block.text) {
            if (firstChunk) {
              process.stdout.write('\r\x1b[K');
              process.stdout.write('Claude: ');
              firstChunk = false;
            }
            process.stdout.write(block.text);
          }
        }
      }
    }
    process.stdout.write('\n\n');

    isProcessing = false;
    rl.resume();
    rl.prompt();
  }

  rl.on('line', async (line) => {
    if (isProcessing) return;

    const input = line.trim();
    if (input === 'exit') {
      rl.close();
      process.exit(0);
    }
    if (input) await ask(input);
    else rl.prompt();
  });

  await ask('What can you help me with?');
}

What's happening:

The readline interface is created to handle user input and output
The query function is used to send the user's input to the agent
The chat loop continues until the user types 'exit' or 'quit'

Run the application

try {
  await chat();
} catch (error) {
  console.error(error);
  process.exit(1);
}

What's happening:

The chat function is the entry point for the application
The try-catch block is used to handle any errors that occur

Complete Code

Here's the complete code to get you started with Ably and Claude Agent SDK:

import 'dotenv/config';
import readline from 'node:readline';
import { Composio } from '@composio/core';
import { query, type Options } from "@anthropic-ai/claude-agent-sdk";

async function chat() {
  const { COMPOSIO_API_KEY, USER_ID } = process.env;
  if (!COMPOSIO_API_KEY || !USER_ID) {
    throw new Error('COMPOSIO_API_KEY and USER_ID required in .env');
  }

  const composio = new Composio({ apiKey: COMPOSIO_API_KEY });
  const session = await composio.create(USER_ID, {
    toolkits: ['ably']
  });
  const mcp_url = session?.mcp.url;

  const options: Options = {
    permissionMode: 'bypassPermissions',
    mcpServers: {
      composio: {
        type: 'http',
        url: mcp_url,
        headers: { 'x-api-key': COMPOSIO_API_KEY }
      }
    },
    systemPrompt: 'You are a helpful assistant with access to Ably tools via Composio.',
    maxTurns: 10,
  };

  const rl = readline.createInterface({
    input: process.stdin,
    output: process.stdout,
    prompt: 'You: '
  });

  console.log('\nChat started. Type "exit" to quit.\n');

  let isProcessing = false;

  async function ask(prompt: string) {
    isProcessing = true;
    rl.pause();

    process.stdout.write('Claude is thinking...');
    const stream = query({ prompt, options });

    let firstChunk = true;
    for await (const msg of stream) {
      const content = (msg as any).message?.content || (msg as any).content;
      if (Array.isArray(content)) {
        for (const block of content) {
          if (block.type === 'text' && block.text) {
            if (firstChunk) {
              process.stdout.write('\r\x1b[K');
              process.stdout.write('Claude: ');
              firstChunk = false;
            }
            process.stdout.write(block.text);
          }
        }
      }
    }
    process.stdout.write('\n\n');

    isProcessing = false;
    rl.resume();
    rl.prompt();
  }

  rl.on('line', async (line) => {
    if (isProcessing) return;

    const input = line.trim();
    if (input === 'exit') {
      rl.close();
      process.exit(0);
    }
    if (input) await ask(input);
    else rl.prompt();
  });

  await ask('What can you help me with?');
}

try {
  await chat();
} catch (error) {
  console.error(error);
  process.exit(1);
}

Conclusion

You've successfully built a Claude Agent SDK agent that can interact with Ably through Composio's Tool Router.

Key features:

Native MCP support through Claude's agent framework
Streaming responses for real-time interaction
Permission bypass for smooth automated workflows

You can extend this by adding more toolkits, implementing custom business logic, or building a web interface around the agent.

TOOLS

Supported Tools

Every Ably action and event your agent gets out of the box.

Query Batch Presence

This tool enables querying the presence states of multiple channels in a single API request.

Query Batch Presence History

This tool enables querying presence history for multiple channels in a single API request.

Delete Channel Subscription

This tool allows you to unsubscribe devices or clients from push notifications for specific channels.

Get Channel Details

This tool retrieves metadata and details for a specific channel in Ably.

Get Channel History

This tool retrieves the message history for a specified Ably channel.

Get Channel Presence

Tool to obtain the set of members currently present for a channel.

Get Message Versions

Tool to retrieve all historical versions of a specific message from an Ably channel.

Get Channel Presence History

This tool retrieves the history of presence messages for a specified channel in Ably.

Get Push Device Registration

Tool to get the full details of a device registration for push notifications.

Get Ably Service Time

This tool retrieves the current server time from Ably's service in milliseconds since the epoch.

Get Application Stats

This tool retrieves your application's usage statistics from Ably.

List Channels

Tool to enumerate all active channels in the Ably application.

List Push Channels

Tool to list all channels with at least one subscribed device.

List Push Channel Subscriptions

This tool retrieves a list of all push notification channel subscriptions.

List Registered Push Devices

Tool to list all devices registered for receiving push notifications in your Ably application.

Patch Push Device Registration

Tool to partially update specific attributes of an existing device registration in Ably's push notification system.

Batch Publish Messages

Tool to batch publish messages to multiple channels in parallel.

Publish Message to Channel

This tool will allow users to publish a message to a specified Ably channel using a POST request.

Publish Push Notification

Tool to publish a push notification directly to device(s) via Ably's Push Notifications API.

Batch Publish Push Notifications

Tool to batch publish push notifications directly to specific recipients.

Tool to register a device for receiving push notifications in Ably.

Request Access Token

Request an access token for Ably authentication.

Unregister All Push Devices

Tool to unregister matching devices for push notifications.

Unregister Push Device

Tool to unregister a single device from push notifications in Ably.

Update Push Device Registration

Tool to update (upsert) a device registration for push notifications in Ably.

FRAMEWORKS

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Codex

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OpenClaw

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Hermes

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CLI

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Google ADK

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LangChain

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Vercel AI SDK

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LlamaIndex

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CrewAI

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

With a standalone Ably MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Ably tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Ably and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Yes, you can. Claude Agent SDK fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Ably tools.

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Ably scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Ably data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

Start with Ably.It takes 30 seconds.

Managed auth, hosted MCP servers, and every Ably tool your agent needs.Free to start.

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Customer stories

Teams ship real agents on Composio

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Karan skipped his own birthday party to fix our critical issue. It was 10pm and he diverted his Waymo to help us instead. This really sets the bar — it shows the commitment you need when users rely on your software.

Harsha Gaddipati

Co-founder, Slashy

A lot of students tell us that the moment their connected tools start talking to each other inside Opennote feels almost magical. The agent just knows them, and it's immensely helped keep new users on the platform.

Abhi Arya

Co-founder, Opennote

We chose Composio over Pipedream because it delivered depth where it mattered — niche tools and tricky edge cases other platforms simply ignored. That gave us confidence to scale without compromising.

Nirman Dave

CEO, Zams

As a solo builder, shipping fast is life or death. The only way I can outcompete incumbents is by outmanoeuvring them. Getting bogged down managing agent auth would have been a death sentence.

Ryan Yu

Founder, Extra Thursday

Before Composio, adding tool integrations was slow and resource-intensive. Each one could take weeks of engineering time, and maintaining them meant constantly keeping up with API changes.

Tomisin Jenrola

Founder & CEO, SwarmZero

With hands-on help from their founder, we integrated Gmail and Google Drive in just 30 minutes. This level of personal support and commitment is exactly what startups should strive for.

Jerome Leclanche

Co-Founder, Ingram Technologies

How to integrate Ably MCP with Claude Agent SDK

Connect Ably without auth hassles

Introduction

Also integrate Ably with

TL;DR

What is Claude Agent SDK?

What is the Ably MCP server, and what's possible with it?

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Composio SDK?

How the Composio SDK works

Step-by-step Guide

Prerequisites

Getting API Keys for Claude/Anthropic and Composio

Install dependencies

Set up environment variables

Import dependencies

Create a Composio instance and Tool Router session

Configure Claude Agent with MCP

Create client and start chat loop

Run the application

Complete Code

Conclusion

Supported Tools

How to build Ably MCP Agent with another framework

OpenAI Agents SDK

Claude Code

Claude Cowork

Codex

OpenClaw

Hermes

CLI

Google ADK

LangChain

Vercel AI SDK

Mastra AI

LlamaIndex

CrewAI

Explore Other Toolkits

Supabase

Codeinterpreter

GitHub

Abuselpdb

Frequently asked questions

What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Ably MCP?+

Can I use Tool Router MCP with Claude Agent SDK?+

Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Ably while using Tool Router?+

How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?+

Start with Ably.It takes 30 seconds.

Teams ship real agents on Composio