Use these tools inside ChatGPT and Claude
Add one connector and your AI assistant checks its own references against Crossref and PubMed before it shows them to you. Free, no account needed to start.
Leave any OAuth or client ID fields empty. With the sign-in address, your assistant opens a Phở sign-in page the first time.
Claude (claude.ai, desktop and mobile)
- Open Settings → Connectors and click Add custom connector.
- Name it
Phở Research Tools, paste the URL above, leave the OAuth fields empty, and click Add. - In a chat, open the + menu → Connectors and make sure Phở Research Tools is on.
On Team and Enterprise plans an owner adds the connector under Organization settings → Connectors first.
ChatGPT
Needs a plan with developer mode (Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise or Edu).
- Go to Settings → Apps & Connectors → Advanced settings and turn on Developer mode.
- Back in Apps & Connectors, click Create. Name:
Phở Research Tools. MCP server URL: the URL above. Authentication: No authentication (or OAuth for the sign-in address). Tick the trust box and click Create. - In a chat, choose Developer mode from the + menu and enable the connector.
Claude Code
claude mcp add --transport http pho-research https://mcp.pho.chat/mcpThen run /mcp to check it shows as connected.
Cursor
Add to ~/.cursor/mcp.json (all projects) or .cursor/mcp.json (one project), then check the server is green under Cursor Settings → MCP:
{
"mcpServers": {
"pho-research": {
"url": "https://mcp.pho.chat/mcp"
}
}
}Other assistants
Any client that supports remote MCP servers over Streamable HTTP works: add the URL above with no authentication.
Things to ask once it is connected
- Write five references on nirsevimab for RSV prevention, then verify each one with Phở Research Tools before showing them.
- Check this reference list and tell me which ones are not real: [paste list]
- Format these DOIs in Vancouver style: 10.1038/nature14539, 10.1136/bmj.n71
- Draw a PRISMA 2020 diagram: 1,390 records from databases, 45 from registers, 312 duplicates removed, 1,021 excluded at screening…
What the tools do
- verify_references: the same check as the reference checker.
- format_citations: the citation generator, plus BibTeX, RIS and CSL-JSON export.
- search_papers: searches OpenAlex and PubMed; every result has a DOI or PMID, and retracted papers are left out.
- check_retractions: retraction, expression-of-concern and correction notices for a list of DOIs.
- prisma_flow_diagram: the PRISMA 2020 diagram as PNG and SVG, with the arithmetic checked.
Frequently asked questions
What is an MCP connector?
MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the open standard Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other assistants use to call outside tools. Adding this connector gives the assistant five tools: verify references, format citations, search papers, check retractions and draw a PRISMA diagram.
Does it cost anything?
No. Without an account you get 30 reference checks and 200 tool calls a day. Signing in with a free Phở account gives 300 reference checks and 3,000 tool calls a month, the same from any network.
What can the assistant see?
Only what it sends to the tools: the references or search terms in that call. The connector cannot read your chats, files or other connectors, and we keep no record of who checked what. To spare the public databases, each lookup and its public answer is cached for up to 30 days, with nothing that identifies you.
Which address should I use?
Use https://mcp.pho.chat/mcp to start straight away with no account. Use https://mcp.pho.chat/mcp/login if you check long reference lists often; your assistant opens a sign-in page once and then uses your account allowance.