---
title: "Run Customer Studies from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor | Minds"
canonical_url: "https://getminds.ai/blog/run-customer-panels-from-claude-chatgpt-cursor-mcp-guide"
last_updated: 2026-09-30
meta:
  description: "Step-by-step guide to running synthetic customer Studies from your AI agent. Covers Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Cursor, and VS Code with the Minds MCP server."
  "og:description": "Step-by-step guide to running synthetic customer Studies from your AI agent. Covers Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Cursor, and VS Code with the Minds MCP server."
  "og:title": "Run Customer Studies from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor | Minds"
  "twitter:description": "Step-by-step guide to running synthetic customer Studies from your AI agent. Covers Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Cursor, and VS Code with the Minds MCP server."
  "twitter:title": "Run Customer Studies from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor | Minds"
---

Minds

May 5, 2026·Updated September 30, 2026·How-to·Minds Team # **Run Customer Studies from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor** Step-by-step guide to running synthetic customer Studies from your AI agent. Covers Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Cursor, and VS Code with the Minds MCP server. This guide shows how to run synthetic customer Studies directly from Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor without leaving the agent surface. Setup takes a few minutes per agent. Once connected, your agent can build Audiences, create Studies, ask questions, and return findings as part of any workflow. The [Minds MCP server](https://getminds.ai/mcp/overview) advertises a curated set of tools covering the whole loop, from building a grounded Audience to planning a multi-question Study and exporting results. Everything below assumes you have a Minds account. Sign up at getminds.ai if you don't. ## What You Can Do Once Connected Your agent gains the ability to: - Build a grounded Audience of Minds from a plain-language brief - Ask one Audience a standalone question - Create a Study that compares several Audiences - Plan a multi-question Study, review it, and run it after explicit confirmation - Read a summary of the findings across completed questions - Export results as PDF, DOCX, PPTX, or Markdown reports, or as CSV, XLS, or SPSS raw data The agent calls these tools in sequence. A typical sequence: an agent receives a brief, builds an Audience, asks it a question or plans a short questionnaire, and returns a synthesized summary. Simple questions usually come back within a few minutes. ## Setup for Claude Desktop For the canonical product docs, keep the [Minds MCP setup guide](https://getminds.ai/mcp/setup) open alongside this walkthrough. Claude Desktop and claude.ai share the same custom connectors, and you sign in with your Minds account over OAuth._Step 1._ Open Customize → Connectors, click +, and choose Add custom connector._Step 2._ Enter the URL `https://getminds.ai/mcp` and click Add._Step 3._ Click Connect, sign in to Minds, and choose Allow._Step 4._ In a conversation, enable Minds from + → Connectors and test by asking Claude "list my Minds Studies"; it should call `list_studies` and return your existing Studies. If your setup cannot complete OAuth, Claude Desktop can instead reach Minds with an API key through the `mcp-remote` bridge. Generate a key in your account settings under API Keys (keys start with `minds_`) and add this entry to `claude_desktop_config.json`:```
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "minds": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y", "mcp-remote",
        "https://getminds.ai/mcp",
        "--header",
        "Authorization: Bearer minds_YOUR_API_KEY"
      ]
    }
  }
}
```## Setup for Claude Code Claude Code connects to the remote server directly over HTTP._Step 1._ Run `claude mcp add --transport http minds https://getminds.ai/mcp` in your terminal._Step 2._ Start Claude Code, run `/mcp`, select `minds`, and choose Authenticate._Step 3._ Sign in to Minds in the browser window that opens and choose Allow. An API key is optional; add `--header "Authorization: Bearer minds_YOUR_API_KEY"` to the first command to use one instead._Step 4._ Test by asking Claude Code to list your Audiences. ## Setup for ChatGPT ChatGPT adds Minds as an MCP app with OAuth sign-in._Step 1._ In ChatGPT on the web, open Plugins and choose Add → Create MCP App. If the option is missing, turn on developer mode or ask your workspace admin to allow custom MCP apps._Step 2._ Name it Minds, set the server URL to `https://getminds.ai/mcp` and authentication to OAuth, then click Create._Step 3._ Click Continue to Minds, sign in with your Minds account, and choose Allow._Step 4._ In a new conversation, type @Minds and ask your question. The [ChatGPT guide](https://getminds.ai/guide/integration-chatgpt) also covers the plugin directory and the desktop app, where you add Minds under Plugins → Add → Add MCP server. ## Setup for Cursor and VS Code Cursor and VS Code with GitHub Copilot both connect to the remote server directly and sign in with OAuth, so no bridge or API key is needed._Step 1._ In Cursor, add Minds to `~/.cursor/mcp.json`:```
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "minds": { "url": "https://getminds.ai/mcp" }
  }
}
```_Step 2._ Authenticate when Cursor prompts, sign in to Minds, and choose Allow._Step 3._ The Minds tools appear in the agent's tool picker. In VS Code, run MCP: Add Server from the Command Palette, choose HTTP, and enter `https://getminds.ai/mcp`. Sign in when prompted, then use the tools from Copilot Chat in agent mode. ## Running Your First Study Once connected, the simplest workflow is:_Step 1._ Ask the agent: "Build an Audience of mid-market B2B SaaS marketing managers in Germany." The agent calls `create_audience_from_brief`. Minds researches the population and builds the Audience; the agent can follow progress with `get_audience_creation_progress`._Step 2._ Ask: "Ask this Audience whether they would pay 200 euros per month for a tool that automates customer interviews." The agent calls `ask_audience`, which creates a private Study for that Audience, and reads the answers with `get_study_status`. The agent summarizes the responses._Step 3._ Ask: "Export this Study as a Markdown report." The agent calls `export_study` and checks the export with `get_study_status`. You get a clean Markdown file with the full Study. For a questionnaire, the agent calls `plan_study_questions` once with every question, shows you the plan, and only runs it with `run_study_questions` after you confirm that exact revision. You can chain the steps in a single prompt: "Build an Audience of US fintech early adopters, ask them about onboarding friction, and export the result." The agent runs the tools in sequence. ## Available Tools The Minds MCP server groups its advertised tools by product area:_Audience tools._ `list_audiences` for browsing existing Audiences, `create_audience_from_brief` for building a grounded Audience, `get_audience_creation_progress` for following creation, `ask_audience` for asking one Audience a question, and `export_audience` and `duplicate_audience` for sharing and reuse._Study tools._ `list_studies` for browsing previous Studies, `create_study` for setting up a Study over several Audiences, `ask_study` for one standalone question, `get_study_status` for results, `get_study_summary` for the findings, and `export_study` for PDF, DOCX, PPTX, Markdown, CSV, XLS, or SPSS output._Planning tools._ `plan_study_questions` and `run_study_questions` for reviewed multi-question Studies, `list_research_methods` for methods such as MaxDiff, and Study drafts and templates for reuse. The agent doesn't need to know these names. It reads the tool descriptions from the MCP handshake and chooses based on the task. You phrase your request naturally and the agent picks the right tool. ## Patterns That Work Well A few patterns we see succeed across teams:_Brief-to-summary in one prompt._ Compose the entire research brief, the question, and the desired output format in a single prompt. The agent runs the full sequence._Iterative messaging tests._ Run a Study once with a baseline message, then ask the agent to test variants. The agent reuses the Study and just calls `ask_study` with new wording._Comparative Studies._ Create one Study with two Audiences (for example early adopters and late majority) and ask the same question of both. Minds reports each Audience's answers side by side._Daily checks._ Schedule the agent to run a brief daily Study question on a specific topic. The agent posts the result to Slack via a connected Slack MCP. ## Auth and Cost API keys use Bearer auth. Keys are scoped to a single Minds account. Revoke and rotate from your account dashboard. OAuth flows for ChatGPT, Claude, Claude Code, Cursor, and VS Code use the same backend. Tokens expire and refresh automatically. Pricing follows the public Minds plans: Free, Premium at 59 EUR/month, Team at 99 EUR per seat per month with a 1-seat minimum, and Enterprise custom pricing. Each tool call counts against the same quota as a manual Study run on the web app. See [pricing](https://getminds.ai/?register=true) for details. ## Troubleshooting If tools list but never fire, the most common cause is a client bug rather than a server issue. The Open WebUI integration in particular has known regressions in some versions, and on the Native function-calling path it requires Bearer auth (the upstream model provider cannot complete the OAuth handshake on Minds' behalf). Switch the connector to API key auth, or disable streaming on the model. If OAuth fails on first connection, the most common cause is a stale connector entry. Delete and re-add. The Minds OAuth handler issues fresh tokens on each registration. If the agent calls a tool but the result looks empty, check that you have at least one Audience or Study already created in your Minds account. Some tools, like `list_studies`, return an empty list if you have none. ## What's Next Once your agent is connected, the next step is composing it with other MCP servers. The most common combination is Minds plus an analytics MCP (PostHog or GA4) and a notification MCP (Slack). This lets the agent run a Study, validate the finding against real product data, and report the result to a team channel automatically. The full list of MCP servers worth connecting in 2026 is in our companion post on the [best MCP servers for marketing and research agents](https://getminds.ai/blog/best-mcp-servers-marketing-research-agents-2026). For reference, the live [Minds MCP tools list](https://getminds.ai/mcp/tools) shows every tool exposed to connected agents. If you're new to the category, the [definition of agentic market research](https://getminds.ai/blog/agentic-market-research-definition) gives the one-page overview of why agents change the workflow at all. That's the full agentic research loop. It runs without a human in the middle, takes minutes instead of weeks, and costs a fraction of a traditional study. The setup above is the only thing standing between most marketing and product teams and that workflow. [Minds](https://getminds.ai/)© 2026 Minds. Your target audience. AI-driven and grounded in transparent evidence. Build within minutes. [Minds on X (Twitter)](https://x.com/mindsai_co) [Minds on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/mindsaicompany/) [Minds on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/getminds.ai/)Minds is part of [![ESOMAR](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/esomar-logo.svg)ESOMAR](https://esomar.org/) [![GreenBook](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/greenbook.svg)GreenBook Directory](https://greenbook.org/company/Minds) [![Insight Platforms](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/insight-platforms.png)Insight Platforms](https://www.insightplatforms.com/platforms/minds/) [![Capterra](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/capterra.svg)Capterra](https://www.capterra.com/p/10046203/Minds/) [![G2](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/g2.svg)G2](https://www.g2.com/products/minds/reviews) [![CSSDA Best UX Design Award](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/cssda-best-ux-award.png)CSSDA Best UX Design Award](https://www.cssdesignawards.com/) [![CSSDA Best Innovation Award](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/cssda-best-innovation-award.png)CSSDA Best Innovation Award](https://www.cssdesignawards.com/) [![CSSDA Best UI Design Award](https://getminds.ai/images/newsroom/logos/cssda-best-ui-award.png)CSSDA Best UI Design Award](https://www.cssdesignawards.com/)