What is the key difference between Founders Os and SHIP?

Founders Os belongs to the Workplace & Productivity category with local stdio execution, while SHIP belongs to the Workplace & Productivity category with cloud HTTP/SSE execution.

How do I install Founders Os or SHIP in Claude Desktop or Cursor?

Copy the mcpServers JSON configuration snippet provided on this page into your claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json file and restart your AI client.

Are Founders Os and SHIP free or paid?

Founders Os operates under a BYOK (Pay Provider Direct) model (API Key required). SHIP operates under a Free / Open Source model (No auth required).

Which MCP server has more tools and community activity?

Founders Os lists 102 tools with 4 views and 19 GitHub stars. SHIP lists 71 tools with 0 views and 0 GitHub stars.

Can I use both Founders Os and SHIP together in the same MCP host?

Yes! MCP hosts like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, Cline, and VS Code support configuring multiple servers under the mcpServers object simultaneously.

Side-by-Side Model Context Protocol Comparison

Founders Os vs SHIP

In-depth architectural comparison of the Founders Os and SHIP MCP servers. Compare execution transports, security boundaries, tool capabilities, quality scores, and ready-to-paste client installation snippets for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code.

At a Glance & Executive Verdict

Founders Os

Workplace & Productivity · Local stdio

Quality: 61/100 (Good) | Auth: API Key required

SHIP

Workplace & Productivity · Remote HTTP/SSE

Quality: 52/100 (Good) | Auth: No auth required

Verdict Summary: Choose Founders Os if you need specialized Workplace & Productivity tools running via a local process. Choose SHIP if your workspace requires Workplace & Productivity integration with remote web transport. Both servers can be configured concurrently in your client's mcpServers manifest.

Which MCP Server Should You Choose?

Choose Founders Os when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Workplace & Productivity domain.
You prefer local stdio subprocess transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: API Key required (BYOK (Pay Provider Direct)).
You have access to required keys: SUPABASE_URL, SUPABASE_SECRET_KEY, FOUNDERS_OS_COMPANY_ID, FOUNDERS_OS_USER_ID, FOUNDERS_OS_TIMEZONE, EMBEDDING_PROVIDER, EMBEDDING_MODEL, EMBEDDING_DIM.
Primary tools included: ping, get_version, get_usage_guide.

Explore Founders Os Details

Choose SHIP when:

You need dedicated capabilities in the Workplace & Productivity domain.
You prefer remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport architecture.
Your security boundary fits: No auth required (Free / Open Source).
Primary tools included: start_mission, create_mission, send_mission_instruction.

Feature & Specification Comparison

Specification	Founders Os OurThinkTank Workplace & Productivity	S SHIP Workplace & Productivity
Summary	Self-hosted business context for your AI client: CRM, check points, automation triggers, financial ledger, tasks, playbooks, news feeds, projects, and semantic memory in one MCP server. Ask one question and it reads your CRM and books together. Your data stays in your own database. MIT licensed.	Assign Linear, Jira or GitHub issues to an AI coding agent team that plans, builds, reviews, tests.
Category & Scope	Workplace & Productivity

Tools & Capabilities Breakdown

Founders Os Tools (102)

ping

Test tool — returns pong.

get_version

Returns the running version of @ourthinktank/founders-os, the rendering contract version (used to detect plugin/server drift), how the connector was launched (launchMethod: npx | global | local | unknown) with a tailored howToUpdate string, the release channel (channel: stable | prerelease), the published head of that channel, and the database schema status (dbSchemaStatus: current | behind | ahead | untracked | unknown) with a howToUpdateDb step when action is needed. Version comparison is semver-aware and channel-aware: stable builds compare against the `latest` tag, prerelease builds against the `next` tag, so a prerelease that is ahead of stable is NOT reported as an update. versionStatus is one of current | update-available | ahead | unknown; updateAvailable is true only when a genuinely newer version exists on your channel (with updateTo naming it). Call at session start; if updateAvailable is true relay current vs updateTo and the howToUpdate step, and if dbSchemaStatus is behind or untracked relay the howToUpdateDb step.

get_usage_guide

Returns a detailed guide on how to use Founders OS - covering all six domains (CRM, Tasks, Tags, Finance, Feeds, Memory), surface tools, search protocols, common workflows, and tips. Call this when uncertain about how to approach a task.

Ready-to-Paste Client Configurations

Paste either (or both) of these JSON server blocks into your client config file (e.g. claude_desktop_config.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json).

Founders Os Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ourthinktank-founders-os": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@ourthinktank/founders-os@latest"
      ],
      "env": {
        "SUPABASE_URL": "YOUR_SUPABASE_URL_HERE",
        "SUPABASE_SECRET_KEY": "YOUR_SUPABASE_SECRET_KEY_HERE",
        "FOUNDERS_OS_COMPANY_ID": "YOUR_FOUNDERS_OS_COMPANY_ID_HERE",
        "FOUNDERS_OS_USER_ID": "YOUR_FOUNDERS_OS_USER_ID_HERE",
        "FOUNDERS_OS_TIMEZONE": "YOUR_FOUNDERS_OS_TIMEZONE_HERE",
        "EMBEDDING_PROVIDER": "YOUR_EMBEDDING_PROVIDER_HERE",
        "EMBEDDING_MODEL": "YOUR_EMBEDDING_MODEL_HERE",
        "EMBEDDING_DIM": "YOUR_EMBEDDING_DIM_HERE"
      }
    }
  }
}

SHIP Configuration

mcpServers (Claude Desktop / Cursor)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ship": {
      "url": "https://mcp.letsship.ai/mcp"
    }
  }
}

Frequently Asked Questions

Founders Os is categorized under Workplace & Productivity and uses a local stdio subprocess. In contrast, SHIP belongs to Workplace & Productivity using remote streaming HTTP/SSE transport. Select Founders Os when you need capabilities focused on workplace & productivity and SHIP when you require tools for workplace & productivity.

More alternatives to Founders Os More alternatives to SHIP Workplace & Productivity category hub