ATEM MCP Server

Control Blackmagic ATEM video switchers with AI assistants using the Model Context Protocol. Works with Claude Desktop, claude.ai, Claude Mobile, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible client.

Talk to your switcher in plain English: "Put camera 2 on program and dissolve to it" or "Start streaming and recording" or "Run macro 3."

Supports both local (stdio) and remote (Streamable HTTP with OAuth 2.0) transports.

How It Works

You (natural language)
  │
  ▼
Claude (Anthropic Cloud)
  │ translates to MCP tool calls
  ▼
ATEM MCP Server (your Mac/PC)
  │ uses atem-connection library
  ▼
ATEM Switcher (network)
  │ executes commands
  ▼
ATEM Software Control / hardware
  │ reflects changes in real time

Supported ATEM Models

The underlying atem-connection library (by NRK/Sofie) supports every ATEM generation:

• ATEM Mini, Mini Pro, Mini Pro ISO, Mini Extreme, Mini Extreme ISO

• ATEM Television Studio HD, HD8, HD8 ISO

• ATEM 1 M/E, 2 M/E, 4 M/E Production Studio / Constellation

• ATEM SDI, SDI Pro ISO, SDI Extreme ISO

• And all other Blackmagic ATEM models

Quick Start

1. Install

cd atem-mcp-server
npm install
npm run build

2. Configure Claude Desktop

Edit your Claude Desktop config file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "atem": {
      "command": "/opt/homebrew/bin/node",
      "args": ["/path/to/atem-mcp-server/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "ATEM_HOST": "192.168.1.100"
      }
    }
  }
}

Note: Replace /opt/homebrew/bin/node with your full Node.js path (run which node to find it). Replace the IP with your ATEM's address.

3. Restart Claude Desktop

Quit and relaunch Claude Desktop. You should see the hammer (🔨) icon indicating MCP tools are available.

4. Start Talking to Your Switcher

• "Connect to my ATEM at 192.168.1.100"

• "Show me the current switcher status"

• "Put camera 3 on preview and dissolve to it"

• "Fade to black"

Environment Variables

If ATEM_HOST is set, the server auto-connects on startup. Otherwise, use atem_connect to connect manually.

Remote Access (claude.ai, Claude Mobile, HTTP)

The HTTP transport exposes the MCP server as a web endpoint with built-in OAuth 2.0. This enables remote access from claude.ai, Claude Mobile, and any HTTP-capable MCP client.

Quick Start (HTTP Mode)

TRANSPORT=http BASE_URL=https://atem.yourdomain.com ATEM_HOST=192.168.1.100 node dist/index.js

The server starts on port 3000 with:

• MCP endpoint: POST /mcp (Bearer token required)

• OAuth 2.0: Full auto-provisioning flow (discovery, registration, authorization, token exchange)

• Health check: GET /health

Connect from claude.ai

1. Go to claude.ai/settings/connectors

2. Click Add custom connector

3. Enter your MCP URL (e.g., https://atem.yourdomain.com/mcp)

4. Click Connect — the OAuth flow completes automatically

5. Start a conversation and control your ATEM remotely

Connect from Claude Desktop (Remote)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "atem": {
      "url": "https://atem.yourdomain.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}

No command or args needed — the server runs remotely.

OAuth 2.0 Implementation

The HTTP server implements a complete OAuth 2.0 flow for MCP authentication:

The OAuth server auto-provisions tokens without user interaction — designed for personal/trusted use. For production environments, consider adding proper authentication.

Expose with Cloudflare Tunnel

Use a named Cloudflare Tunnel for a permanent URL — no port forwarding, no dynamic DNS, no changing URLs.

Prerequisites

• A free Cloudflare account

• A domain managed by Cloudflare DNS

• cloudflared CLI installed (brew install cloudflared on macOS)

Setup

1. Authenticate and create tunnel

cloudflared login
cloudflared tunnel create atem-mcp

Note the tunnel ID (a UUID).

2. Route DNS

cloudflared tunnel route dns atem-mcp atem.yourdomain.com

3. Create config file (~/.cloudflared/config.yml)

tunnel: <TUNNEL_ID>
credentials-file: ~/.cloudflared/<TUNNEL_ID>.json

ingress:
  - hostname: atem.yourdomain.com
    service: http://localhost:3000
  - service: http_status:404

4. Start the server and tunnel

# Terminal 1: MCP server
TRANSPORT=http BASE_URL=https://atem.yourdomain.com ATEM_HOST=192.168.1.100 node dist/index.js

# Terminal 2: Cloudflare tunnel
cloudflared tunnel run atem-mcp

Your MCP endpoint is now live at https://atem.yourdomain.com/mcp.

Critical: Disable Cloudflare AI Bot Blocking

If you use Cloudflare and connect from claude.ai, you must disable AI bot blocking or claude.ai's requests will be silently blocked with a 403.

Claude.ai's backend uses the Claude-User user agent from Google Cloud Platform IPs. Cloudflare's "Block AI training bots" managed rule blocks these requests before they reach your server.

To fix:

1. Go to Cloudflare Dashboard > select your domain

2. On the Overview page, find "Block AI training bots" on the right sidebar

3. Change from "Block on all pages" to "Do not block (allow crawlers)"

You can verify in Security > Analytics > Events — blocked requests show as Service: Managed rules, Rule: Manage AI bots, User agent: Claude-User.

Run as a Background Service (macOS)

sudo cloudflared service install

This creates a launch daemon that starts the tunnel on boot.

Useful Commands

cloudflared tunnel list              # List all tunnels
cloudflared tunnel info atem-mcp     # Show tunnel details
cloudflared tunnel cleanup atem-mcp  # Remove stale connections
cloudflared tunnel delete atem-mcp   # Delete the tunnel entirely

Available Tools (58 tools)

Connection

Switching

Transitions

Routing & Keyers

Macros

Recording & Streaming

Super Source

Audio Mixer (Fairlight + Classic)

Audio tools auto-detect the mixer type. Fairlight is used on ATEM Mini Extreme, Constellation, and newer models. Classic is used on ATEM Mini, Mini Pro, and older models.

Fairlight EQ & Dynamics

Full parametric EQ, compressor, limiter, and gate/expander control for ATEM models with Fairlight audio (Mini Extreme, Constellation, and newer). Includes EQ presets for common use cases.

Common Input IDs

Example Conversations

Basic switching:

"Put camera 1 on program"
"Set preview to camera 3 and do a 2-second dissolve"
"Cut to color bars"

Show setup:

"Set transition style to mix with a 45-frame rate"
"Route camera 1 to aux 1 for the confidence monitor"
"Put DSK1 on air for the lower third graphic"

Streaming/Recording:

"Start streaming and recording"
"What's the recording status?"
"Stop streaming but keep recording"

Audio (Fairlight & Classic):

"Lower camera 2 audio by 5 dB" "Set camera 1 audio to audio-follow-video mode" "Mute audio on input 3" "Set master output to -3dB" "Show me the audio mixer state"

Fairlight EQ & Dynamics:

"Apply vocal EQ preset to mic 1" "Boost presence at 3kHz on camera 2 audio" "Add a compressor to mic 1 — 4:1 ratio, threshold at -20dB" "Gate mic 2 so it cuts off below -40dB" "Put a limiter on the master at -3dB" "Show me the EQ and dynamics state for input 1" "Reset all EQ on camera 1 to flat"

Gallery & Active Speaker:

"Go gallery" "Go gallery with guests on cameras 2, 3, and 5" "Cut to active speaker" "Auto switch" (starts following the active speaker continuously) "Auto switch host + active speaker" (host full-screen when talking, side-by-side when guest talks) "Auto switch off" "Set up a side-by-side with cameras 1 and 2" "Cut to host with 3"

Save & Recall Looks:

"Save this look as podcast4" "Load podcast4" "Load podcast4 with cameras 2, 3, 6, 7" (reuses layout geometry with different sources) "What looks do I have saved?" "Delete the old_test look"

Architecture

This server uses the atem-connection library (by NRK/Sofie TV Automation) which implements Blackmagic's proprietary ATEM protocol over UDP. It's the same protocol that ATEM Software Control uses, so all changes are reflected in real time across all connected clients.

The MCP server wraps atem-connection methods as MCP tools that Claude (or any MCP-compatible AI) can call. Each tool maps to one or more ATEM commands.

Transport modes:

• stdio (default) — for Claude Desktop, Cursor, and local MCP clients

• HTTP (TRANSPORT=http) — Streamable HTTP with OAuth 2.0, for claude.ai, Claude Mobile, and remote access. Uses Express + raw http.createServer for proper header handling with the MCP SDK.

Live Show Usage

When using this server to control an ATEM during a live production, you need every command to execute instantly — no confirmation dialogs, no approval prompts, no delays. The experience varies by client:

Client Behavior

For live production, use claude.ai, Claude Mobile, or Claude Desktop. These clients execute MCP tool calls without interruption — you say "cut to camera 2" and it happens immediately.

Claude Code (the terminal CLI) is designed for software development and has a safety system that prompts for approval before running tools. This is great for coding but unsuitable for live switching where every second counts.

Pre-Show Checklist

Run through this checklist before going live to catch issues early:

1. Verify connection — "Show me the switcher status"

2. Test switching — "Put camera 1 on preview, then cut to it"

3. Test transitions — "Set transition to mix at 30 frames and dissolve to camera 2"

4. Test audio — "Show me the audio mixer state"

5. Test recording/streaming — "Start recording" → verify → "Stop recording"

6. Test Super Source (if using) — "Set up a side-by-side with cameras 1 and 2"

7. Set your show defaults — transition style, rate, audio levels, EQ presets

Tips for Live Production

• Set in your environment so the server auto-connects on startup — no need to manually connect each time

• Use specific language — "Cut to camera 3" is faster than "Can you switch to the third camera please?"

• Combine commands — "Put camera 2 on preview and dissolve to it" executes as a single preview_and_auto call

• Keep a fallback — Always have ATEM Software Control or a hardware panel available in case of network issues

Troubleshooting

Hammer icon not showing in Claude Desktop:

• Make sure you're using the full path to node (run which node)

• Check logs: ~/Library/Logs/Claude/mcp*.log

• Restart Claude Desktop completely (quit, not just close window)

Can't connect to ATEM:

• Verify the ATEM is on the same network

• Try pinging the ATEM IP from terminal

• Default ATEM port is 9910 (UDP)

• Make sure ATEM Software Control isn't blocking the connection

claude.ai connector shows auth error:

• Check Cloudflare "Block AI training bots" is set to "Do not block" (see Cloudflare section)

• Check Security > Analytics > Events in Cloudflare dashboard for blocked requests

• Verify BASE_URL matches your public tunnel URL exactly

• Test with curl -X POST https://your-url/mcp — should return 401 JSON (not 403 HTML)

HTTP server returns 406 Not Acceptable:

• The MCP SDK requires Accept: application/json, text/event-stream but some clients send Accept: */*

• The server includes a built-in workaround that patches the Accept header at the raw HTTP level

Commands not working:

• Some features require specific ATEM models (e.g., streaming/recording on Mini Pro+)

• Check atem_get_status to verify connection

Credits

• Guy Cochran (Office Hours Global) — Creator and project lead

• Claude by Anthropic — AI pair-programming partner

• atem-connection by NRK (Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation) — the ATEM protocol library

• MCP TypeScript SDK by Anthropic

License

MIT