VS Code Insiders Podcast Building a MCP to Build VS Code & The Impact of AI on Kent C. Dodds
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Sep 1, 2025 Kent C. Dodds, a full-time educator specializing in testing and AI, joins Tyler Leonhardt, a developer from the VS Code team. They discuss the latest advancements in Model Control Protocol (MCP) authentication and how it’s shaping developer experiences. Kent shares insights on integrating AI into programming education and the evolving landscape of tools that enhance learning. Their conversation also touches on the impact of conferences in fostering community and innovation, marking a dynamic shift in product engineering.
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MCP Enables Secure Remote Tool Access
- MCP enables remote servers to expose tools so models can directly call provider APIs without storing personal tokens locally.
- Tyler Leonhardt highlights OAuth adoption for secure remote MCP interactions to avoid local secret storage.
Building An MCP Inside VS Code
- Tyler built an MCP server checked into the VS Code repo to let models run Playwright against a local dev build.
- He demoed fetching a GitHub issue, making UI CSS changes, and verifying before/after screenshots automatically.
Runtime Checks Fill The UI Validation Gap
- Static compilation checks aren't enough for UI changes; runtime verification is required to confirm visual fixes.
- Integrating runtime tools into MCP bridges the gap between compile-time success and actual UI correctness.