MCP server for Hacker News — search stories, read comments, and track tech trends via AI agents
@isteam/hackernews-mcp
MCP server for Hacker News — search stories, read comments, and track tech trends via AI agents.
Built by is.team — the AI-native project management platform.
Quick Start
Add to your MCP config (.mcp.json for Claude Code, or Claude Desktop settings):
{
"mcpServers": {
"hackernews": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "@isteam/hackernews-mcp"]
}
}
}
No API keys required — uses the public Hacker News API and Algolia HN Search.
Tools (10)
Stories
| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| top_stories | Get current top stories on Hacker News |
| new_stories | Get newest stories |
| best_stories | Get highest-voted stories |
| ask_stories | Get Ask HN stories |
| show_stories | Get Show HN stories |
| job_stories | Get job postings |
| get_story | Get a specific story by ID (title, URL, score, text) |
Search
| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| search | Full-text search across stories and comments (powered by Algolia) |
Users & Comments
| Tool | Description |
|------|-------------|
| get_user | Get a user's profile (karma, about, member since) |
| get_comments | Get threaded comments on a story (depth-limited) |
Rate Limits & Agent Safety
Both APIs used by this server are public and have generous limits:
| API | Limit | Notes |
|-----|-------|-------|
| HN Firebase API | ~500 req/sec per IP | No auth required, very lenient |
| Algolia HN Search | ~1,000 req/min per IP | Returns X-RateLimit-* headers |
This server is read-only — there are no write operations, so idempotency and duplicate posting are not a concern.
Backoff: If you hit Algolia's rate limit, it returns 429 with X-RateLimit-Reset header. Add a brief delay before retrying.
Usage Examples
Track tech trends:
"What are the top 10 stories on Hacker News right now?"
Research a topic:
"Search Hacker News for discussions about 'MCP protocol' sorted by date"
Analyze community sentiment:
"Get the comments on story 12345678 and summarize the main opinions"
Monitor Show HN:
"Show me the latest Show HN posts — are any related to AI project management?"
Competitive research:
"Search HN for mentions of Linear, Jira, and Asana in the past month"
Data Sources
This MCP server uses two public APIs:
- Hacker News API — Official Firebase-based API for stories, comments, and user profiles
- Algolia HN Search — Full-text search with relevance ranking and date filtering
Both APIs are free, require no authentication, and have generous rate limits.
About is.team
is.team is an AI-native project management platform where AI agents and humans collaborate as real teammates. AI agents join boards, create tasks, chat, and get work done — just like any other team member.
Part of the is.team open-source MCP ecosystem:
- @isteam/mcp — Project management
- @isteam/google-ads-mcp — Google Ads
- @isteam/twitter-mcp — Twitter/X
- @isteam/bluesky-mcp — Bluesky
- @isteam/linkedin-mcp — LinkedIn
- @isteam/hackernews-mcp — Hacker News
License
MIT