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As AI agents become the new interface for work, a major question looms: how will your product connect into this ecosystem?
In this episode of Supra Insider, Marc and Ben sat down with Reid Robinson, product manager leading AI at Zapier. They talked about the rise of Model Context Protocols (MCPs) — the new standard for connecting AI agents to tools and data sources.
Reid explains the fundamentals of MCP clients vs. servers, why the standard is gaining traction across players like Anthropic, OpenAI, and Atlassian, and how product leaders can decide where to start. He also shares concrete examples, from personal productivity hacks to enterprise integrations, showing what’s possible when you combine MCP with Zapier’s 8,000+ app ecosystem.
Whether you’re building your first AI copilot, figuring out how to expose your product’s data to agents, or just want to understand where this ecosystem is headed, this episode will give you a front-row seat to the future of AI interoperability.
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In this episode, we covered the following topics:
* (01:20) Reid explains MCPs, why they matter, and the client vs. server model (USB analogy).
* (04:45) Clarifying definitions with practical examples (Claude + HubSpot, Zapier as bootstrap MCP server).
* (10:45) Why product leaders should prioritize MCP: user behavior, AI adoption trends, and future risks.
* (16:25) How MCPs differ from APIs and why agents need standardized tool use.
* (23:11) Should companies start with an MCP client or server? Reid’s framework for prioritization.
* (30:33) Real-world use cases: Reid’s personal dinner hack (real-time networking insights via Claude + Zapier MCP).
* (39:10) Advanced use case: syncing a family whiteboard calendar with Google Calendar using Claude projects.
* (43:30) Where to find Reid and how product teams can engage with Zapier’s MCP initiatives.
* And more!
Links:
* Reid Robinson: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reidtrobinson/
* Zapier: https://zapier.com/
* Marc: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbaselga/
* Ben: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benerez/
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* Supra has teamed up with Maven to bring you something special – courses that our own community members have personally curated. And because you're part of the Supra family, you get $100 off any of these handpicked selections with code SUPRAxMAVEN.
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