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Keen Code

Add one entry to ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json, and Keen Code can search the live web, read whole pages and documents, and ask for structured data. These sit next to its own web_fetch.

SpecStream for Keen CodeCoding agents

What you need

  1. 1. Create a SpecStream API key

    In SpecStream, open Agents & API, choose API keys, then Create API key, and give it a spending limit above 0. Copy the key when it is shown. It is not shown again.

  2. 2. Add SpecStream to ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json

    When Keen starts, it reads its MCP servers from ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json. SpecStream serves Streamable HTTP. Keen uses that transport for any entry with a url and no command. With "type": "api_key" and no header, Keen sends the key as Authorization: Bearer <key>, which is what SpecStream expects.

    If the file already lists servers, add the specstream entry inside the same servers object. Keen does not read environment variables in this file, so the key is stored in it as you typed it. Keep the file private, for example with chmod 600 ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json.

    ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json
    {
      "servers": {
        "specstream": {
          "url": "https://api.specstream.ai/mcp",
          "auth": {
            "type": "api_key",
            "key": "YOUR_SPECSTREAM_KEY"
          }
        }
      }
    }

  3. 3. Restart Keen and check the server

    Keen connects to every configured server at startup and does not reload the file while it runs, so restart it after each edit. Then run /mcp status. The specstream server should show connected. Keen also writes a skill named mcp:specstream that lists each SpecStream tool with its schema, so the agent reads those details only when it needs them.

    In Keen
    /mcp status

  4. 4. Ask for live web data

    Ask in plain words. Keen calls SpecStream through its call_mcp_tool tool and asks for your approval before each call:

    In a Keen session
    Find the latest stable release of Go, read its release notes, and list the changes that affect go.mod.

Sign in with OAuth instead of a key

Replace the auth block with { "type": "oauth" }, restart Keen, and run /mcp connect specstream. Keen registers itself with SpecStream and opens the sign in page in your browser. It then waits for the reply at http://localhost:1456/auth/mcp/callback. Keen stores the token in its auth store and reuses it at the next start. Until you connect, /mcp status shows auth_required. Requests run on the account that signed in.

What the agent calls

Each call goes through call_mcp_tool with "server": "specstream", the tool's name and its arguments.

  • search_web answers a question from the live web with up to 10 results, each with its URL. It takes {"q": "<the question>"}.
  • read_pages returns the main text of up to 20 pages or documents (PDF, Word, Excel), read live. It takes {"urls": ["<url>"]}.
  • compile turns a request for many records into its conditions and the facts to bring back, and quote_capacity_work prices it. Neither one costs anything.
  • authorize_capacity_work starts a Deep Search run only with confirm_max_cents equal to the maximum you approved. get_find tracks the run, and list_find_rows reads the rows, each value with its source URL and read time.

Next to the built in web_fetch

Keen Code ships web_fetch, which reads a URL you already have. It has no web search tool. With SpecStream added, search_web finds the pages for a question, and read_pages reads up to 20 pages or documents in one call, including PDF, Word and Excel files. The Search API is the most accurate web search API on SimpleQA Verified and WideSearch. The scores and the method are on the benchmarks page.

Approvals in Keen

Keen asks for your approval before every call_mcp_tool call. A search or a page read is charged to your balance as soon as it runs. A Deep Search run has a second gate: it starts only after you approve the maximum that SpecStream quotes.

For one project only

Keen does not look for an MCP file inside a project. Put the entry in a file of its own and start Keen with keen --mcp-config ./mcp-config.json. For that session, the file replaces ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json and is not merged with it. Keen stops with an error if the file is missing or invalid. Headless runs take the same flag: keen run --mcp-config ./mcp-config.json "<prompt>".

If it does not connect

/mcp status shows each server's state and its last error. auth_failed means SpecStream refused the key, so check that you copied it whole and that it has not been revoked. disconnected means Keen could not reach the address. A single invalid entry in configs.json stops every MCP server from loading. If call_mcp_tool is missing, check the JSON first.

Cost

Each search_web call is one Search API search at $5 per 1,000 searches of up to 10 results. Each page read_pages reads costs $0.80 per 1,000 pages, and a page with no text is not charged. Both come out of your balance with no quote, up to the key's spending limit. A Deep Search run is priced per row and starts only after you approve its maximum. New accounts start with $10 of credit, no card. See how billing works.

Disconnect

Remove the specstream entry from ~/.keen/mcp/configs.json and restart Keen. Revoke the key under Agents & API in SpecStream. Send questions to [email protected].

More

SpecStream for Keen Code covers what it does in Keen Code on one page. Every other tool has its guide in Connect your tools. You see the most a request can cost before it starts, and the matches are paid from your balance. Billing has the details. For help, email [email protected].