What is MCP? Giving AI safe access to your accounting

How AI talks to your accounting software (without you building anything)

You want AI to understand your administration. But ChatGPT and Claude have no access to Exact Online on their own. Until recently you had to build a separate connector for every combination of AI tool and business software. That is expensive, fragile and not scalable. MCP (Model Context Protocol) solves this with a universal standard.

Think of an employee with permissions

You hire a new employee. You give that person access to the accounting package, but not to everything. Only to the folders and functions they need. You decide what that person may view, change and delete.

MCP works exactly the same way, but for AI. Instead of building a separate integration for every combination of AI tool and business software, there is now one standard that connects them all. And you decide the permissions.

Whether you use ChatGPT, Claude or GitHub Copilot, they all connect to the same connector with Exact Online. Switching to a different AI tool tomorrow? Your connector simply keeps working.

How does it work in practice?

You ask your AI assistant: "Which invoices are outstanding?"

1. Through the connector the AI knows which data is available in Exact Online
2. Based on your question the AI chooses the right approach and sends a request via MCP
3. The connector retrieves the correct data from Exact Online through the secure API
4. You get the answer in plain English, within a few seconds

You notice nothing of the technology behind it. You ask a question, you get an answer. In our article Exact Online + AI in plain English we show what such a conversation looks like.

What can you do with it?

The connector offers your AI assistant a set of capabilities. The AI chooses the right approach itself based on your question.

You do not need to know which function you need yourself. The AI takes care of that for you. Curious which tasks you can pick up straight away? Take a look at 5 tasks you can automate right now.

Which AI tools work with it?

The standard is being adopted quickly by the major AI providers:

The list is growing fast. The standard is open, so any AI provider can connect.

Is it safe?

Our experience is that safety is the first question entrepreneurs ask, and rightly so. Here is how it works:

• You give permission. You log in through Exact Online and choose which administrations you connect. Nothing happens without your consent.
• All communication is encrypted. The connection runs over secure channels (HTTPS). No one can read along.
• Changes require confirmation. Does the AI want to adjust something in your administration? Then it first asks whether you agree. Deleting is protected with an extra safeguard.

The AI model does not store data between sessions. During advanced analyses your administration data is stored securely and encrypted. You can revoke the connection at any time. You can read more about this in The safety of your accounting data with AI.

Why is this relevant for your business?

No dependence on a single AI provider

Because the standard is open, you are not tied to ChatGPT or Claude. Switch whenever you want. Your connector keeps working.

No programming knowledge needed

Set it up once (5 minutes), then ask questions in plain English. No code, no Excel, no export.

Future-proof

The big tech companies are moving to this standard in large numbers. Investing in a connector that supports the standard is investing in something that lasts.

Get started in 5 minutes

1. Create an account with Exact AI Connect
2. Log in with Exact Online, you choose which administrations you connect
3. Copy the connection URL to your AI tool (ChatGPT or Claude)
4. Ask your first question, for example "Which invoices are outstanding?"

The first 30 days are free. No obligations. This is how you set it up in a few steps.

Want to try it yourself? Start for free with Exact AI Connect →