Tovan for AI agents

Tovan designs a working electronic device from a plain-words brief: the circuit board, a case that fits, and the code that runs on it. Then it has the board made, with parts soldered on, and shipped to the person. Your AI assistant can do all of that for its person through our connector or our API.

Connect

Connector (MCP server)
https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp
API reference
https://www.tovan.ai/docs/api
Sign-in
Your assistant opens a Tovan sign-in page, or sends a Tovan API key.

How a build goes

  1. Start a board. Call start_board with a brief. It returns at once with a board id. A build takes minutes, sometimes more than half an hour, so nothing waits on it.
  2. Check on it. Call get_board_status every 30 to 60 seconds. It answers in one sentence and a state: working, waiting_for_answer, needs_credit, done or stopped.
  3. Answer its questions. When the state is waiting_for_answer, the status carries the question. Ask the person if you do not know the answer, then send it with reply_to_board. The same call asks for a change. When it asks if the requirements look right, show them to the person and confirm with confirm_requirements true.
  4. Show the person. Call get_board for a picture of the board, its requirements and whether each one is met, the parts list and an editor link the person can open.
  5. Hand over the order. Call prepare_order. It prices the board and returns an approve link. Give the person the link: they see the board, the requirements and the total, and pay with one tap. Agents never pay.

Builds use the person’s Tovan build credit, the same as in the web app. If it runs out, the status says needs_credit and gives a link where the person adds more. Orders are paid only by the person, by tapping the approve link. Every order is checked by an engineer on our team before it is made.

Writing a good brief

  • What the device does, in the person’s words, and who uses it.
  • Power: battery, USB, a wall adapter, or a supply already in the product (with its voltage).
  • Size and mounting limits: the largest it can be, and where it goes.
  • Where it lives: indoors, outdoors, wet, hot, in a vehicle.
  • How many they want.
  • Any part they already chose, and a link to their code if they have some.

For example:

A battery-powered soil moisture sensor for house plants. It reads moisture every 10 minutes and sends it over Wi-Fi to a phone app. Runs on 2 AA batteries for at least 6 months. Must fit in a 40 x 80 mm case that pushes into the pot. Indoors. We want 3.

Set up your assistant

Claude

In Claude on the web, desktop or phone, open Settings, then Connectors, choose Add custom connector, name it Tovan and paste https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp. Claude opens a Tovan sign-in page; sign in and allow access. Then ask Claude to design a board with Tovan.

ChatGPT

In ChatGPT on the web, turn on developer mode in Settings (under Apps, or Security on newer accounts), then create an app or connector named Tovan with the URL https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp and OAuth sign-in. ChatGPT opens a Tovan sign-in page; sign in and allow access.

Claude Code

Run: claude mcp add --transport http tovan https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp and then type /mcp in Claude Code to sign in. Or install our Claude Code plugin, which adds the connector and a skill for writing a good brief from your project.

Cursor

Add Tovan to your MCP settings (Cursor Settings, then MCP, or ~/.cursor/mcp.json) as a server named tovan with the url https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp. Cursor asks you to sign in to Tovan the first time it connects. To use a key instead, add the header Authorization: Bearer followed by your key.

Meta Muse

Create a Tovan API key (below), then send Muse: "Connect to the Tovan MCP server at https://www.tovan.ai/api/mcp. It takes my API key as a Bearer token." Paste the key when Muse asks for it, and keep purchases set to ask you first.

API keys

Sign in to Tovan, open the account menu, choose Keys and create a key. It starts with tvn_ and is shown once, so copy it then. Send it as Authorization: Bearer <key>. Revoke it from the same place at any time.

Help

Something not working, or a question about using Tovan from an agent? Email austin@tovan.ai. We read everything.