TLDRsWhat Is WebMCP?TLDRNewWhat Is WebMCP?Alex Garrett-SmithNov 92:40Agents and context Takeaway WebMCP lets a page register tools with the browser, so an agent can call them directly to use the site.SaveCopy linkCopied Transcript Play from 0:03When an AI agent uses a website for you, it normally does it the way you would. It reads the page's code, or a screenshot of it, works out which button does what, and clicks it. WebMCP is a proposed web standard where the page gives the browser a set of tools, like search the catalog or add to cart, and the agent calls those directly.Play from 0:24It sends its inputs as JSON and gets data back, so there's no button to find. Here's what that looks like on a shop. You ask an agent to add two bags of coffee to your cart. Done the normal way, it reads the product page, finds the quantity box, types 2, finds the Add to Cart button and clicks it.Play from 0:45If a pop-up appears or the button isn't where it expected, it's guessing. With WebMCP, the agent asks the browser which tools this page has. One of them is Add to Cart, which takes a product and a quantity.Play from 1:01The agent calls it with the coffee and the number 2 and gets the result back as data. On the site side, a tool is a name, a plain description of what it does, the inputs it takes and a function that runs when it's called.Play from 1:16The page registers each tool with the browser using a function called registerTool. Now that function runs in the tab you're looking at, so it's using your session. When the agent adds something, it's your cart that changes, and you can watch it happen.Play from 1:34When you move into checkout on a Shopify store, that page registers its own tools, so the agent can fill in your delivery details and call complete checkout. But that only places the order once you've confirmed it, and if your bank asks for an extra security check, the tools hand control back to you.Play from 1:53You might be thinking, agents can already call tools with MCP, the Model Context Protocol. With regular MCP, the agent connects to a server the company runs, which needs its own way to know who you are. With WebMCP, the tools run in your browser with the session you've already got.Play from 2:11For an agent that runs on its own, I'd still use a normal MCP server. There are a few catches. It's still a proposal and only some browsers support it so far. It only works on sites that register tools.Play from 2:28So on a site that registers tools, the agent calls them and skips the clicking. Anywhere else it's back to guessing which button to press.