> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.privateequitylist.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Search Private Equity List from Claude, ChatGPT & Other AI Assistants

> Connect the Private Equity List MCP server to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Windsurf, Gemini, or Perplexity and search thousands of PE/VC investors in plain language.

The Private Equity List MCP connector lets you search the investor database directly from your AI assistant — Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Windsurf, Gemini, Perplexity, or any other MCP-compatible client. Describe who you're looking for in plain language and the assistant maps your request to the right filters and returns a table of matching investors.

<Note>
  Searching investors requires an active **Pro**, **Pro+**, or **Pro Max** subscription. See [Plans & Pricing](/account/plans-pricing) for details.
</Note>

## TL;DR

<Steps>
  <Step title="Get your MCP key">
    Get it at [privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp](https://privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp) (requires Pro, Pro+, or Pro Max).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add the server to your client">
    Point your AI assistant at `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` and sign in with your MCP key when the browser opens. Per-client instructions below.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask in plain language">
    For example: *"Find Series A VC investors in fintech based in Europe"* — the assistant returns a table of matching investors.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Connecting Your AI Assistant

Add the Private Equity List MCP server using one of these two URLs:

* **`https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp`** — the main URL. Use this everywhere unless your client tells you otherwise. It handles both the standard browser-based OAuth sign-in and MCP key Bearer-token connections.
* **`https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/sse`** — legacy fallback, only for older clients that support the SSE transport exclusively.

<Warning>
  The bare `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com` with no path doesn't work for either transport — it only serves a blank info page.
</Warning>

<Tip>
  For the best experience we recommend **Claude** or **VS Code** — they handle the sign-in flow smoothly and work great for iterating on investor searches.
</Tip>

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Claude (recommended)">
    1. In Claude, open **Settings → Customize → Connectors**.
    2. Select **Add custom connector** and enter `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp`.
    3. Click **Add** — a browser window opens. Sign in with your **MCP key** from [privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp](https://privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp) and authorize the connection.
    4. Open a new chat and enable **Private Equity List** in the tools menu (the sliders icon).

    The connection then stays authorized between chats — Claude only asks you to sign in again once its token expires. Works the same in Claude on the web, desktop, and mobile.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="ChatGPT">
    ChatGPT calls a custom MCP connection a **plugin**, and adding one needs developer mode.

    1. In ChatGPT, open **Settings → Security and login** and turn on **Developer mode**. Availability depends on your account, and inside a workspace on your admin's policy.
    2. Go to [chatgpt.com/plugins](https://chatgpt.com/plugins) and select the **plus** button.
    3. Enter a name (**Private Equity List**) and a short description.
    4. Under **Connection**, enter `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` as the MCP server URL, then create the connection. Sign in with your **MCP key** from [privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp](https://privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp) when the browser opens.
    5. Open it from [your personal plugins](https://chatgpt.com/plugins?view=personal) and select the plus button to install it.
    6. In a new chat, add **Private Equity List** from the tools menu.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Claude Desktop (config file)">
    Open your Claude Desktop configuration file, add `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` under `mcpServers`, then restart Claude Desktop.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="VS Code (recommended)">
    Open the Command Palette → **MCP: Add Server** → **HTTP**, and enter `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp`. Or add it to your `mcp.json`:

    ```json theme={null}
    {
      "servers": {
        "private-equity-list": {
          "type": "http",
          "url": "https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp"
        }
      }
    }
    ```

    VS Code opens a browser to sign in with your MCP key the first time you use the server.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Cursor">
    Go to **Settings → MCP → Add server** and enter `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp`.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Windsurf">
    Add `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` to your Windsurf MCP configuration.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Gemini CLI">
    Run:

    ```bash theme={null}
    gemini mcp add --url https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp private-equity-list
    ```

    No separate login step needed — Gemini CLI discovers the sign-in requirement automatically and opens a browser the first time you actually use the connector.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Claude Code (CLI)">
    Run:

    ```bash theme={null}
    claude mcp add --transport http private-equity-list https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp && claude mcp login private-equity-list
    ```

    The `login` step opens a browser to sign in with your MCP key; after that, the connection stays authorized until the token expires.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Perplexity">
    Go to **Account settings → Connectors → + Custom connector**, choose **Remote**, and enter `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` with transport type **Streamable HTTP**. Requires a Perplexity paid subscription.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Antigravity">
    Antigravity doesn't support the browser-based OAuth sign-in yet, so connect with your MCP key as a Bearer token on the main `/mcp` URL. Add this to `mcp_config.json`:

    ```json theme={null}
    {
      "mcpServers": {
        "private-equity-list": {
          "headers": {
            "Authorization": "Bearer <your-mcp-key>"
          },
          "url": "https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp"
        }
      }
    }
    ```
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Other / advanced clients">
    Start with `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp` and the standard OAuth sign-in flow. If your client can't do a browser-based sign-in (no OAuth support), add the server manually with your MCP key as a Bearer token on the same URL:

    ```text theme={null}
    Authorization: Bearer <your-mcp-key>
    ```

    Only if your client supports the older SSE transport exclusively, fall back to `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/sse`.

    For clients that speak stdio only and can't reach a remote server directly, bridge with:

    ```bash theme={null}
    npx mcp-remote https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp
    ```
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

<Note>
  **Being asked to sign in again is normal.** Depending on your client and how long its token stays valid, the connector may ask you to re-authenticate every few days or weeks. Just run the one-click sign-in again — there's nothing to reconfigure and no new key to generate.
</Note>

## Tools & Data

The connector exposes two read-only tools. Nothing is ever written back to your Private Equity List account.

| Tool | What it does |
| - | - |
| `search_investors` | Finds investors by type, stage, industry, investment size, location, minority / ESG focus, and fund-level filters. Returns a table of matches, plus fund and contact counts you can drill into. |
| `get_token_balance` | Reports how many search tokens you have left and when they renew — or confirms unlimited access on Pro Max. |

## Getting Your MCP Key

You'll need an MCP key from your Private Equity List account to connect. Get and manage it at [privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp](https://privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp).

<Warning>
  Keep your MCP key private — anyone with your key can search on your behalf and use your token balance.
</Warning>

<Note>
  For security, MCP keys **expire one year** after creation. If you see a message that your key has expired, generate a new one from your account settings and reconnect.
</Note>

## What You Can Ask For

The assistant can filter investors by:

* **Investor type** — Private Equity, Venture Capital, Angel investors, Corporate VC, Family offices, Fund of funds, Debt funds
* **Investment stage** — Pre-seed, Seed, Series A, Series B, Late Stage (Series C+)
* **Industry** — any sector or niche (fintech, healthtech, climate, etc.)
* **Investment size** — from under $1M up to $100M+
* **Location** — country, state/region, city, or broader investment region (e.g. Europe, Asia, North America)
* **Minority / ESG focus** — impact investors, women-led, LGBTQ, and other minority-focused funds
* **Fund-level details** — fund industry, stage, region, size, and launch date

Just ask naturally, for example:

> "Find Series A VC investors in fintech based in Europe"

> "Show me family offices in the US that invest \$10–50M in healthcare"

> "Are there any impact investors focused on climate tech in the UK?"

## Subscriptions and Usage

Searching investors requires an active **Pro**, **Pro+**, or **Pro Max** subscription.

* **Pro / Pro+** — usage is measured in tokens. Every new investor the assistant shows you costs one token; investors you've already seen in the same conversation don't cost anything extra. Your token balance renews on a monthly cycle, and the assistant shows your remaining balance and renewal date at the start of each session.
* **Pro Max** — unlimited access. No token balance to track or run out of.

If you run out of tokens, the assistant will let you know and suggest upgrading. If your subscription isn't active, you'll be asked to subscribe before searching.

## Tips for Better Results

<Tip>
  Be specific — narrowing your search by stage, industry, or region saves tokens and returns more relevant results.
</Tip>

* Large result sets (100+ investors) won't be dumped all at once — the assistant tells you the total and asks whether to narrow the search or show everything.
* You can ask follow-up questions about a specific investor's funds or contacts once they appear in your results.

## Security & Privacy

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Your data, your access" icon="user-lock">
    The connector only returns data your Private Equity List subscription already gives you access to.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Read-only" icon="lock">
    Every tool only reads. Nothing in your Private Equity List account is created, changed, or deleted.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Verify the endpoint" icon="shield-check">
    Connect only to the official `mcp.privateequitylist.com` endpoint, over HTTPS.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Privacy" icon="file-shield">
    See how we handle your data in the [privacy policy](https://privateequitylist.com/privacy-policy).
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Troubleshooting

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Which URL do I paste?">
    Use `https://mcp.privateequitylist.com/mcp`. The older `/sse` endpoint still works but is legacy — only reach for it if your client supports nothing else. Don't paste the bare host without a path: it only serves a blank info page.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="It connects, but searches come back with an error">
    Searching needs an active **Pro**, **Pro+**, or **Pro Max** subscription. *"No active subscription"* means the plan isn't active; *"Token limit reached"* means this cycle's tokens are spent — either wait for the monthly renewal or upgrade.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Do I have to sign in again periodically?">
    Yes, and that's normal. Depending on your client and how long its token lives, the connector may ask you to re-authenticate every few days or weeks, and after some app updates. Re-run the one-click sign-in — there's nothing to reconfigure and no new key to generate.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="The assistant answers without using Private Equity List data">
    Name the connector in your prompt — for example *"using the Private Equity List connector, find Series A fintech VCs in Europe"*. Otherwise the assistant may answer from its own general knowledge instead of querying the database.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="My search returned nothing">
    Usually the filters are too narrow — loosen one of them or rephrase more broadly. Countries are matched on full names, so use *United States* rather than *USA*, and *United Kingdom* rather than *UK*.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="My key stopped working">
    MCP keys expire one year after they're issued. Generate a fresh one at [privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp](https://privateequitylist.com/settings/api-mcp) and sign in again with the new key.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Need Help?

If you run into connection issues, an expired key, or subscription questions, reach out to Private Equity List support from your account.


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