Video Reader MCP

Local-first video evidence: streams, chapters, subtitles, scenes, and follow-up crops your agent can cite.

People who work with Transport and want it reachable from Claude, Cursor, VS Code, or another MCP client. The project is written in TypeScript.

VERIFIED ACTIVE

LAST COMMIT 2026-09-17 · ★ 3 · #72 OF 173 MAINTAINED MEDIA · VERIFIED 2026-09-18

MIT · TypeScript servers · how we verify → /methodology

01 · Install Video Reader MCP

before you install - you'll need

MCP_TRANSPORT

Environment variables documented in the project's README - it lists which are required and which have defaults.

Claude Code

claude mcp add sylphxai-video-reader-mcp -- npx -y @sylphx/video-reader-mcp

Claude Desktop / Cursor / VS Code - add to config

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "sylphxai-video-reader-mcp": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": [
        "-y",
        "@sylphx/video-reader-mcp"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Same JSON for Cursor. For VS Code, rename the top-level key from `mcpServers` to `servers`.

Using another client? Same JSON, different key

Claude Desktop · mcpServers

Cursor · mcpServers

VS Code · servers

Windsurf · mcpServers

Zed · context_servers

Cline · mcpServers

Roo Code · mcpServers

Continue · mcpServers

LibreChat · mcpServers

Gemini CLI · mcpServers

Codex CLI · mcp_servers

Full setup guides: every client.

02 · Evidence

Security posture

What to check before giving this server access to your agent - from the registry, GitHub, and our own probes. We don't score safety; we show what's verifiable.

runs as local process (stdio) - runs on your machine with your user's permissions

license MIT - declared in the repository

npm package @sylphx/video-reader-mcp - the @sylphx scope differs from the repo owner (sylphxai); confirm it's the project's official package

registry namespace io.github.SylphxAI is GitHub-verified and matches the repo owner

03 · What Video Reader MCP can do

Prose above is summarized from the project's README and registry record - no invented capabilities.

Latest releases

v0.1.0 · 2026-07-08

Ship v0.1.0 read_video MCP tool with ffprobe timeline extraction, embedded subtitle support, optional scene detection, and unit-tested parsers. · All notable changes are documented here. Releases use Changesets.

04 · Who maintains Video Reader MCP

Video Reader MCP is maintained by sylphxai. We track 4 MCP servers from sylphxai - 3 actively maintained, 938 combined GitHub stars, oldest repo from Apr 2025. Full record: all servers from sylphxai.

05 · Facts

repository: github.com/sylphxai/video-reader-mcp
website: https://github.com/SylphxAI/video-reader-mcp#readme
category: media - ranked #72 of 173 actively-maintained media servers as of 2026-09-18.
release cadence: 1 release in the last 90 days (latest 2026-07-08)
registry: io.github.SylphxAI/video-reader-mcp (active, first published 2026-07-08)
packages: npm:@sylphx/video-reader-mcp

06 · Video Reader MCP FAQ

What is Video Reader MCP?

Local-first video evidence: streams, chapters, subtitles, scenes, and follow-up crops your agent can cite.

Is Video Reader MCP still maintained?

Yes - as of 2026-09-18, its last commit was 2026-09-17 and it shipped 1 release in the last 90 days. We re-verify nightly.

How do I install Video Reader MCP?

Run `npx -y @sylphx/video-reader-mcp`. The README documents one environment variable (MCP_TRANSPORT) to set first. You can also paste the ready-made client config above.

Does Video Reader MCP run locally?

Yes - it's a stdio server: it runs on your machine (via npx) with your user's permissions. Your data stays local unless the server itself calls external APIs.

07 · Alternatives to Video Reader MCP

Alternatives to Video Reader MCP

Maintained media servers if Video Reader MCP isn't the fit.

More media MCP servers · Post Fader · Talonic · Templated · Vidlens MCP · Transcribe

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