Integration · Websites & content

Connect Claude & ChatGPT to Plainly

Ask your AI to render a video from one of your After Effects templates in Plainly, filling in the text and layers for you. It can look up projects and the parameters a template takes, start single or batch renders, find failed renders and resubmit them. It can also render Plainly's ready-made designs and read your Video Genius brands and videos.

Connect Plainly free

Free plan, no credit card. Takes about a minute.

Try asking

“Which parameters does the Product Promo template take?”
The AI reads the project and its template, and lists the editable layers a render can fill.
“Render the Product Promo video with the headline 'Summer sale' and price 199.”
It starts a render with those layer values. When it is done, it can give you the output video URL.
“Which renders failed this week?”
It lists renders filtered by state, with project and template, so you can see what went wrong.

What your AI can do

Projects and templates

List and read your After Effects projects and templates, see their editable layers, and create or update projects.

Renders and batches

Start renders and batch renders, check their state and output, and cancel, resubmit or delete renders.

Designs and Video Genius

Render ready-made designs, and read Video Genius brands, articles and the videos generated for them.

“Resubmit the failed render for the Oslo store.”
It finds the render and resubmits it with the same settings.
“Make one video per row in this list of 20 store names.”
It starts a batch render on the project with one parameter set per video, and reports the batch progress.
“Which ready-made designs can I use for an Instagram story?”
It lists Plainly's designs and reads a design's variants and parameters, so you can render one without uploading a project.

25 tools for Plainly

These tools are switched on when you connect. You can switch any of them off, or require your approval before it runs.

cancel_renderDeletesCancel a queued or running render by `render_id`.
create_batch_renderVisible to othersStart a batch that renders many videos from one project: `project_id` plus `batch_data`, a list of parameter sets (one video each).
create_projectChanges dataCreate a project from an After Effects project zip at `file_url`, with optional `name`, `description` and `tags`.
create_renderChanges dataRender a video from a project (`project_id`, optional `template_id`) with the layer values in `parameters`.
delete_renderDeletesPermanently delete a render by `render_id`. Set `skip_assets` to keep its output files.
get_article_videoGet one generated video by `brand_id`, `article_id` and `video_id`.
get_batchGet one batch render by `batch_id`, with its progress.
get_brandGet one Video Genius brand by `brand_id`.
get_brand_articleGet one article of a brand by `brand_id` and `product_id` (the article ID).
get_designGet one design by `design_id`, including its variants and parameters.
get_organizationGet the connected Plainly organization's details.
get_projectGet one project by `project_id`, including its templates and their editable layers (the parameters a render can fill).
get_renderGet one render by `render_id`, including its state and the output video URL when done.
get_templateGet one template of a project by `project_id` and `template_id`, including its layers and the parameters you can set.
list_article_videosList the videos generated for an article by `brand_id` and `article_id`.
list_batch_rendersList the individual renders in a batch by `batch_id`.
list_batchesList batch renders, optionally filtered by `project_id` or `reference_id`.
list_brand_articlesList the articles (products or posts) of a Video Genius brand by `brand_id`.
list_brandsList your Video Genius brands.
list_designsList Plainly's ready-made designs you can render without uploading a project.
list_projectsList your After Effects projects uploaded to Plainly.
list_rendersList renders, filtered by `project_id`, `template_id` or `state`. Use it to find recent or failed videos.
render_designChanges dataRender a video from a ready-made design by `design_id` with `parameters`, an optional `variant_id` and `color_palette`.
resubmit_renderChanges dataResubmit a failed or finished render by `render_id` to render it again with the same settings.
update_projectChanges dataUpdate a project's name, description, tags or source file by `project_id`.

Set up in three steps

1
Pick the app
Create a free PipMCP account and choose Plainly from the app list.
2
Paste your key
Paste your Plainly API key as the username and leave the password empty. You find the API key in the Plainly web app under Settings.
3
Add the link to your AI
You get a personal MCP link. Add it to Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor:
1. Click your name, then Settings › Connectors › Add custom connector.
2. Paste your link as the Remote MCP server URL.
3. Switch it on from the + menu in a chat.

Questions

What can the AI do in Plainly?

The AI can read your organization, projects, templates, renders, batches, designs and Video Genius brands, articles and videos. It can create and update projects, start renders, batch renders and design renders, and cancel, resubmit or delete renders if you switch those tools on.

Does the AI see my Plainly API key?

No. Your Plainly credentials are encrypted at rest and never shown to the AI. After you save them, they are not shown again, not even to you. The AI only sees the results of the tools it calls.

Can I control what the AI is allowed to do?

Yes. You choose which tools are switched on, so you can start read-only. Cancelling a render and permanently deleting a render can require your approval before they run. Every tool call is logged.

Does it work with ChatGPT?

Yes. In ChatGPT go to Settings › Apps & Connectors › Advanced and turn on Developer mode, then add your PipMCP link. Developer mode needs a paid ChatGPT plan: Plus, Pro, Business or Enterprise. The same link also works in Claude (Settings › Connectors › Add custom connector), Cursor and other MCP clients.

What does it cost?

PipMCP has a free plan with no credit card required. Paid plans bill per completed task. You also need your own Plainly account.

How does the AI know when a video is ready?

Renders in Plainly run in the background. The AI starts the render and gets a render ID back. It can then look up the render to see its state, and once it is done, the render includes the output video URL.