AI assistants with MCP

The MCP server belongs to typstgen, the separate PDF builder. This template package supplies the layouts and schemas. An MCP-compatible assistant can call the builder while its own editor tools update your JSON data or Typst source files.

Connect an example project

Complete the installation guide first, including the template package and fonts. The repository’s examples/it-consultant project already has a typstgen.toml with package and font paths. Use that directory as the server root.

Configure a local stdio server in your MCP client’s server settings. The settings-file location depends on your client; this is the common mcpServers shape:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "typstgen": {
      "command": "/absolute/path/to/typstgen",
      "args": ["mcp", "--root", "/absolute/path/to/typst-business-templates/examples/it-consultant"]
    }
  }
}

Replace both paths. For configured invoices, use the pinned binary installed by the setup guide under .cache/test-tools/typstgen-<revision>/bin/typstgen. An absolute executable path avoids a desktop client’s different PATH selecting an older global installation. Restart or reconnect the server as required by your client.

The root selects the working directory and its typstgen.toml. Tool input and output paths are relative to it. Configured package and font paths resolve from the project configuration. Give the assistant’s editor tools access to the same project so it can make requested edits.

Try the included letter

Ask your assistant:

Check documents/letters/2025/letter-001.typ, show me page 1 and report any compiler warnings. After I review the preview, compile it to documents/letters/2025/letter-001-mcp.pdf. Use creation_timestamp: 1792972800 for the check, preview and compile calls.

The calls use the same document path and fixed timestamp:

Tool	Arguments for this example	Result
check	path, creation_timestamp	Compiler diagnostics and page count; writes no PDF
preview	path, creation_timestamp, page: 1	A PNG of the requested page
compile	path, creation_timestamp, output	PDF written to the requested project path

list_templates lists .typ files in the configured template directories. It is a source-file discovery tool; the package reference describes the exported template functions. MCP does not translate document content or edit files itself.

Keep the build reproducible

The model’s proposed edits can vary. Once you accept the source and JSON, the same complete input set goes through the same compiler as a CLI build. Keep data, templates, assets, fonts, compiler/package versions and timestamp fixed. See Deterministic builds.

A successful check reports compiler results. Inspect the preview for layout and review the document’s content separately. External invoice validation remains a separate step.

Configured invoices

The coordinated source build also exposes prepare_invoice, list_document_profiles, resolve_document_profile and validate_document. Use invoice configuration for user-owned tax and presentation settings, or invoice profiles for explicitly bounded profile checks. Published typstgen 0.5.0 does not include those tools.

For the full tool parameters and a video with actual tool results, see typstgen’s MCP guide.