Anthropic Connects Claude to Apps, Boosts Research Capabilities
Claude Gets More Integrated
▼ Summary
– Anthropic has introduced two beta features for its AI assistant Claude: “Integrations” for connecting with external apps and “Advanced Research” for generating comprehensive reports.
– These updates are initially available for Claude Max, Team, and Enterprise users, with Pro tier access planned, aiming to compete with AI offerings like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.
– The Integrations feature, built on Anthropic’s Model-Connect Protocol, allows Claude to securely interact with apps like Atlassian, Zapier, and PayPal, enhancing its understanding of user workflows.
– The Advanced Research feature enables Claude to perform in-depth investigations by querying web and enterprise data sources, producing detailed reports with citations, though this process takes longer.
– Anthropic has increased usage limits for its AI coding assistant, Claude Code, for Max tier subscribers, reinforcing Claude’s role as a robust tool for complex tasks and research.
Anthropic is enhancing its AI assistant, Claude, aiming to make it a more versatile tool for complex tasks. The company has introduced two significant beta features for its paid subscribers: “Integrations,” allowing Claude to connect with external applications, and “Advanced Research,” designed for generating more comprehensive reports by searching across diverse data sources.
These updates, initially available for Claude Max, Team, and Enterprise users (with Pro tier access planned soon), signal Anthropic’s continued effort to match and differentiate its offerings against competitors like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.
Bridging the Gap with Integrations
The new Integrations feature allows developers to build connections between their applications or services and Claude. Built upon Anthropic’s Model-Connect Protocol (MCP), which provides a secure way for the AI to interact with external tools, Integrations lets users authorize Claude to access data and perform actions within connected apps.
Launch partners include prominent platforms like Atlassian, Zapier, Cloudflare, Intercom, Square, and PayPal. For instance, the Atlassian integration enables Claude to summarize documents or create new pages within Confluence, while the Zapier connection potentially links Claude to thousands of apps via Zapier’s automation workflows. The goal, as Anthropic stated, is to give Claude deeper context about a user’s work – “understanding project histories, task statuses, and organizational knowledge.”
Advanced Research for Deeper Insights
Alongside app connections, Anthropic unveiled Advanced Research. This feature expands Claude’s ability to gather information, allowing it to query not just the web but also connected enterprise data sources (via Integrations) and even local files if using the Claude desktop app.
Anthropic positions this as a tool for more thorough investigation. When activated, Claude reportedly breaks down complex requests, researches constituent parts across potentially hundreds of sources, and compiles a detailed report, complete with citations linking back to the source material. This process is noted to take longer than previous quick summaries – anywhere from five to 45 minutes – reflecting a deeper analytical process likely leveraging more advanced reasoning capabilities within the AI model. This aligns with a broader trend where AI assistants are being equipped for more complex, multi-source research tasks.
Anthropic also mentioned an increase in usage limits for its AI coding assistant, Claude Code, specifically for Max tier subscribers, further bolstering the platform for power users. These combined updates represent Anthropic’s push to position Claude not just as a conversationalist, but as a capable assistant embedded within users’ workflows and research processes.
(Inspired by: TechCrunch)
