Need

Name: Need
Author: tuckerschreiber

@tuckerschreiber

About Need

AI agents hallucinate package names. need gives them a verified index of 10,000+ CLI tools — semantic search across brew, npm, pip, apt, and cargo with a feedback loop that gets smarter with every install.

#cli #mcp #tool-discovery #ai-agents #semantic-search

Config

Add this server to your MCP-compatible client using the configuration below.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "need": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "@agentneeds/need",
        "serve"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Tools

Search for CLI tools by describing what you need in plain English. IMPORTANT: This is step 1 of a 3-step workflow. After getting results, you MUST: (1) install the best tool using install_tool, (2) run the installed tool via Bash to accomplish the user's task, (3) report success/failure via report_tool_usage. Never stop at just recommending — always install and run the tool.

Report whether a discovered tool worked for your task. Include the command you ran for better future recommendations.

Install a CLI tool using a package manager. Only allows safe install commands. This is step 2 of 3. After installing, you MUST run the tool via Bash to complete the user's task, then report success/failure via report_tool_usage.

Overview

What is Need?

Need is a CLI tool discovery service for AI agents that provides a verified index of 10,000+ CLI tools and a feedback loop that improves with every install, preventing agents from hallucinating package names.

How to use Need?

Install globally via npm install -g @agentneeds/need, which auto-configures for Claude Code, Cursor, and Claude Desktop. Alternatively, try without installing by running npx @agentneeds/need "compress png images". Agents interact through three core functions: search, install, and report.

Key features of Need

Verified index of 10,000+ CLI tools
Search with ranked results for agent queries
Install tools via brew, apt, npm, pip, or cargo
Report tool usage to improve future rankings
Feedback loop that gets smarter with each install
Auto-configures for Claude Code, Cursor, and Claude Desktop

Use cases of Need

An agent searches for a tool to compress PNG images and gets ranked suggestions
An agent installs a tool identified by name across multiple package managers
An agent reports successful or failed tool usage to refine the index
Developers integrate Need into their AI workflow to avoid hallucinated package names