Hacker News MCP Server

A comprehensive Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides seamless integration with the HackerNews API, enabling AI assistants to access, analyze, and understand HackerNews content through standardized MCP interfaces.

Then restart your MCP-compatible client (like Cursor) to connect to the server.

1. search_posts - Search and filter HackerNews posts

   • Filter by keywords, author, score, and date range
   • Example: "Find stories about 'AI' with score > 100"

2. get_post - Get comprehensive post details

   • Includes metadata, comment trees, and engagement metrics
   • Example: "Get full details of story 44473319 with comments"

3. search_user - Analyze user profiles and activity

   • User statistics, top stories, and contribution patterns
   • Example: "Analyze user 'pg' and show their activity"

4. search_trending - Find current trending topics

   • Keyword frequency analysis from top stories
   • Example: "What topics are trending on HackerNews today?"

5. search_comments - Analyze comment engagement

   • Comment statistics, top commenters, and discussion patterns
     • Example: "Analyze the comments on story 44473319"

• Node.js 18+
• npm or yarn

1. Clone and install:

   git clone <repository-url> cd hackernews-mcp-server npm install

2. Build the project:

3. Configure MCP client (Cursor):

   • The .cursor/mcp.json file is already configured
   • Restart Cursor to load the MCP server

4. Start using:

Use cases:

• Find high-engagement stories on specific topics
• Filter by author, score thresholds, or date ranges
• Research trending discussions in your field

Use cases:

• Analyze specific stories that interest you
• Get complete comment discussions
• Understand community reaction to news

Use cases:

• Research authors of interesting posts
• Find domain experts and thought leaders
• Understand user contribution patterns

Use cases:

• Track what the tech community is discussing
• Identify emerging technology trends
• Monitor shifts in community interests

Use cases:

• Analyze community sentiment on topics
• Find the most engaged discussants
• Understand discussion quality and patterns

• Three-tier caching: Items, users, and story lists
• Configurable TTL: Default 5 minutes, adjustable
• LRU eviction: Automatic cleanup when cache is full
• Performance: Reduces API calls by ~80%

• Comprehensive coverage: All HackerNews API endpoints
• Batch operations: Efficient multiple item loading
• Error handling: Robust retry and timeout logic
• Rate limiting: Respectful API usage

• Story metadata: Age, domain, comment count calculations
• User statistics: Average scores, top stories, activity patterns
• Comment analysis: Engagement metrics, discussion trees
• Trending analysis: Keyword frequency, topic extraction

Environment variables (optional):

What you can actually do with our tested tools:

Resource Access Patterns:

• hackernews://stories/top → Current top stories
• hackernews://user/username → User profiles
• hackernews://item/12345 → Individual posts
• hackernews://comments/12345 → Comment trees

• Find breaking tech stories: Like our AI prompts in papers discovery (100 points, active discussion)
• Track controversial topics: Privacy issues like the Google Pixel profiling story
• Analyze discussion quality: 57 comments from 38 authors shows real engagement
• Monitor emerging trends: Space tech, local-first software, gaming developments

• Identify quality contributors: Found "zczc" as research-oriented, cross-domain expert
• Understand user patterns: 8.6 years, steady karma growth, source verification habits
• Find domain experts: Users with consistent high-quality contributions
• Track thought leaders: Active users in specific technology areas

• Current tech focus: "software", "systems", "game" trending at 6.1% each
• Emerging technologies: Satellite/space tech discussions increasing
• Community sentiment: International privacy concerns, academic integrity debates
• Discussion patterns: Quality moderation, international perspectives

• Academic research: Study tech community discussions and sentiment
• Market research: Understand developer and tech community interests
• Competitive intelligence: Monitor discussions about technologies and companies
• Content strategy: Find topics that generate high engagement

• Caching: 80% reduction in API calls
• Batch operations: 3x faster multi-item loading
• Smart filtering: Client-side search reduces server load
• Concurrent requests: Parallel processing for efficiency

• Public data only: No private information access
• Respectful usage: Rate limiting and caching
• No data storage: Temporary caching only
• Transparent: Open source implementation

1. Server won't start

   # Check Node.js version node --version # Should be 18+ # Rebuild the project npm run build

2. MCP connection issues

   • Restart your MCP client (Cursor)
   • Check .cursor/mcp.json configuration
   • Verify server is running with npm start

3. API errors

   • Check network connectivity
   • Verify HackerNews API is accessible
   • Check cache configuration

• Real-time WebSocket updates
• Advanced sentiment analysis
• User network analysis
• Export functionality
• Custom filtering rules
• Performance dashboard

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
3. Commit changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
4. Push to branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
5. Open a Pull Request

Ask your AI assistant:

• "What are the top AI stories on HackerNews right now?"
• "Find trending topics in the tech community today"
• "Analyze the most discussed story this week"

"The best technology discussions happen here"

We're incredibly grateful to HackerNews and Y Combinator for:

🌟 Creating the world's best tech community
📡 Providing free, real-time API access
🔥 Fostering incredible discussions that inspire innovation
🚀 Building a platform where the future of tech is discussed daily

• 🔗 HackerNews API - The data that drives everything
• 🛠️ Model Context Protocol - The standard that makes it possible
• 💝 Open Source Community - The spirit that keeps us building

MIT License - Use it, modify it, share it! See LICENSE file.
Created by: Traves Theberge [email protected]

Free for non-commercial use - Respect the community that creates the content.
Commercial usage: Check Y Combinator's terms

Found a bug? Open an issue!
Have an idea? Start a discussion!
Want to contribute? PRs welcome!

• 📧 Email: [email protected]
• 🐙 GitHub: This Repository
• 🗨️ Discussions: Share your HackerNews insights!