Within the MCP contributor community we maintain two types of collaboration formats - Interest and Working groups. Interest Groups are responsible for identifying and articulating problems that MCP should address, primarily by facilitating open discussions within the community. In contrast, Working Groups focus on developing concrete solutions by collaboratively producing deliverables, such as SEPs or community-owned implementations of the specification. While input from Interest Groups can help justify the formation of a Working Group, it is not a strict requirement. Similarly, contributions from either Interest Groups or Working Groups are encouraged, but not mandatory, when submitting SEPs or other community proposals. We strongly encourage all contributors interested in working on a specific SEP to first collaborate within an Interest Group. This collaborative process helps ensure that the proposed SEP aligns with community needs and is the right direction for the protocol. Long-term projects in the MCP ecosystem, such as SDKs, Inspector, or Registry are maintained by dedicated Working Groups.

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Purpose

These groups exist to:
  • Facilitate high-signal spaces for focused discussions - contributors who opt into notifications, expertise sharing, and regular meetings can engage with topics that are highly relevant to them, enabling meaningful contributions and opportunities to learn from others.
  • Establish clear expectations and leadership roles - guide collaborative efforts and ensure steady progress toward concrete deliverables that advance MCP evolution and adoption.

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Mechanisms

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Interest Groups (IGs)

Goal: Facilitate discussion and knowledge-sharing among MCP contributors who share interests in a specific MCP sub-topic or context. The primary focus is on identifying and gathering problems that may be worth addressing through SEPs or other community artifacts, while encouraging open exploration of protocol issues and opportunities. Expectations:
  • Regular conversations in the Interest Group Discord channel
  • AND/OR a recurring live meeting regularly attended by Interest Group members
Examples:
  • Security in MCP
  • Auth in MCP
  • Using MCP in enterprise settings
  • Tooling and practices surrounding hosting MCP servers
  • Tooling and practices surrounding implementing MCP clients
Lifecycle:
  • Creation begins by filling out a template in the #wg-ig-group-creation Discord channel
  • A community moderator will review and call for a vote in the (private) #community-moderators Discord channel. Majority positive vote by members over a 72h period approves creation of the group.
    • The creation of the group can be reversed at any time (e.g., after new information surfaces). Core and lead maintainers can veto.
  • Facilitator(s) and Maintainer(s) responsible for organizing IG into meeting expectations
    • Facilitator is an informal role responsible for shepherding or speaking for a group
    • Maintainer is an official representative from the MCP steering group. A maintainer is not required for every group, but can help advocate for specific changes or initiatives.
  • IG is retired only when community moderators or Core or Lead Maintainers determine it’s no longer active and/or needed
    • Successful IGs do not have a time limit or expiration date - as long as they are active and maintained, they will remain available
Creation Template:
  • Facilitator(s)
  • Maintainer(s) (optional)
  • IGs with potentially similar goals/discussions
  • How this IG differentiates itself from the related IGs
  • First topic you to discuss within the IG
Participation in an Interest Group (IG) is not required to start a Working Group (WG) or to create a SEP. However, building consensus within IGs can be valuable when justifying the formation of a WG. Likewise, referencing support from IGs or WGs can strengthen a SEP and its chances of success.

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Working Groups (WG)

Goal: Facilitate collaboration within the MCP community on a SEP, a themed series of SEPs, or an otherwise officially endorsed project. Expectations:
  • Meaningful progress towards at least one SEP or spec-related implementation OR hold maintenance responsibilities for a project (e.g., Inspector, Registry, SDKs)
  • Facilitators are responsible for keeping track of progress and communicating status when appropriate
Examples:
  • Registry
  • Inspector
  • Tool Filtering
  • Server Identity
Lifecycle:
  • Creation begins by filling out a template in #wg-ig-group-creation Discord channel
  • A community moderator will review and call for a vote in the (private) #community-moderators Discord channel. Majority positive vote by members over a 72h period approves creation of the group.
    • The creation of the group can be reversed at any time (e.g., after new information surfaces). Core and lead maintainers can veto.
  • Facilitator(s) and Maintainer(s) responsible for organizing WG into meeting expectations
    • Facilitator is an informal role responsible for shepherding or speaking for a group
    • Maintainer is an official representative from the MCP steering group. A maintainer is not required for every group, but can help advocate for specific changes or initiatives
  • WG is retired when either:
    • Community moderators or Core and Lead Maintainers decide it is no longer active and/or needed
    • The WG no longer has an active Issue/PR for a month or more, or has completed all Issues/PRs it intended to pursue.
Creation Template:
  • Facilitator(s)
  • Maintainer(s) (optional)
  • Explanation of interest/use cases, ideally originating from an IG discussion; however that is not a requirement
  • First Issue/PR/SEP that the WG will work on

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WG/IG Facilitators

A Facilitator role in a WG or IG does not result in a maintainership role across the MCP organization. It is an informal role into which anyone can self-nominate. A Facilitator is responsible for helping shepherd discussions and collaboration within an Interest or Working Group. Lead and Core Maintainers reserve the right to modify the list of Facilitators and Maintainers for any WG/IG at any time.

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FAQ

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How do I get involved contributing to MCP?

These IG and WG abstractions help provide an elegant on-ramp:
  1. Join the Discord and follow conversations in IGs relevant to you. Attend live calls. Participate.
  2. Offer to facilitate calls. Contribute your use cases in SEP proposals and other work.
  3. When you’re comfortable contributing to deliverables, jump in to contribute to WG work.
  4. Active and valuable contributors will be nominated by WG maintainers as new maintainers.

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Where can I find a list of all current WGs and IGs?

On the MCP Contributor Discord there is a section of channels for each Working and Interest Group.