modelcontextprotocol / modelcontextprotocol/java-sdk

Feature Request: Support for MCP Apps Extension (UI capabilities)

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enhancement waiting for triage
Dominant language
Java
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Description

Background

The MCP Apps extension was announced on January 26, 2026, bringing
interactive UI capabilities to the Model Context Protocol. This extension allows MCP servers to return rich, interactive user
interfaces (dashboards, forms, visualizations, etc.) that render directly in client applications.

According to the official blog post, MCP Apps enable
servers to deliver UIs through sandboxed iframes with bidirectional communication via JSON-RPC over postMessage.

Current Status

Currently, MCP Apps support appears to be available only in the TypeScript/JavaScript SDK
(@modelcontextprotocol/ext-apps). The Java SDK (v0.17.2 and earlier releases) does not appear to include support for the
Apps extension.

Use Case

We are building an MCP client application (MiniClaw) in Java using Spring Boot and the official Java MCP SDK (v0.17.2). We
would like to support MCP Apps to enable our users to interact with rich UIs provided by MCP servers, such as:

  • Interactive data visualizations (charts, maps, 3D models)
  • Multi-step forms and workflows
  • Real-time dashboards and monitoring interfaces
  • Document viewers and editors

Our frontend is built with Vue.js, and we're prepared to implement the client-side AppBridge integration. However, we need
the Java SDK to:

  1. Detect App capabilities from server responses (when a tool returns UI metadata)
  2. Parse and expose App-related data structures (UI resource declarations, iframe URLs, etc.)
  3. Support the extended protocol for Apps-related messages if any backend changes are required

Questions

  1. Is MCP Apps support planned for the Java SDK? If so, is there an estimated timeline or roadmap?
  2. What would be required to implement this? Are there specific protocol changes, new data structures, or APIs that need
    to be added?
  3. Can we contribute? If this is not currently prioritized, would the maintainers be open to community contributions?
    We'd be happy to help implement this feature.
  4. Workarounds? In the meantime, are there any recommended approaches for Java-based MCP clients to handle Apps responses
    from servers?

Additional Context

  • Java SDK version in use: v0.17.2
  • Client architecture: Spring Boot 3.4.5 + Vue.js 3 frontend
  • We've reviewed the TypeScript implementation and AppBridge documentation
  • We understand the client-side UI rendering will be handled in our frontend, but need backend SDK support for protocol
    handling

References

Thank you for maintaining this excellent SDK! We appreciate any guidance or updates on this feature request.

Contributor guide

Open the contributing guide

First steps

  1. Read the whole issue, then the project's contributing guide.
  2. Comment on the issue to say you are picking it up — it saves two people doing the same work.
  3. Fork the repository and make your change on a branch.
  4. Open a pull request that references the issue number.

Research direction

Read the MCP Apps specification at ext-apps/specification/2026-01-26/apps.mdx, compare it with the TypeScript implementation, and inspect the Java SDK v0.17.2 handling for tool results and capabilities. Done means the Java SDK has an agreed implementation for detecting Apps capabilities, exposing UI resource data, and supporting any required Apps protocol messages.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Assessment

Tech stack
java
Domain
api, backend
Issue type
Feature
Difficulty
5/5
Estimated time
Over a week
Activity status
Stale
Clarity
Needs clarification
Newbie friendliness
30/100

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