# Connect apps to the AI assistant > In the assistant, click + and then Connect your apps (or Manage apps), pick an app such as Linear or add a custom MCP server, and click Connect; the assistant can then read from the app and asks you before it writes anything. Category: AI and integrations Web page: https://www.pactto.com/help/connect-apps-to-assistant All guides: https://www.pactto.com/help.md ## What apps do Apps let the Pactto assistant work with tools outside Pactto. Once you connect an app, such as Linear, you can ask things like "What Linear issues are assigned to me?" or "Turn the action items from this meeting into Linear issues". The assistant reads from the app with your account and always asks before it writes anything. A connection is yours only. It works in every room, and other people in the room, guests included, cannot see it or use it. Each of them connects their own account. This is the opposite direction of the Pactto MCP server, which lets Claude or ChatGPT read your Pactto rooms: see [Connect Claude or ChatGPT to Pactto](https://www.pactto.com/help/connect-ai-assistant-mcp.md). ## Connect an app 1. In the assistant panel, click **+** next to the text box. 2. Under **Apps**, click **Connect your apps** (or **Manage apps** if you already have one connected). The **Apps** window opens. 3. Pick the app in the list on the left. Its page shows **What it does**, **How it connects**, and the app's **Tools**, each marked **Read** or **Write**. 4. Click **Connect**. A sign-in window for the app opens. Sign in and allow access. 5. Pactto shows the progress: **Signed in to** the app, **Connecting to server**, **Discovering tools**. When it is done, the app moves under **Connected** with a **Connected** badge. 6. Click **Try in Assistant** to go back to the chat. If you connected an app because the assistant asked for it, the chat shows **Run your last request again?** with your request. Click **Do it** to send it again. Otherwise, the chat may suggest a few prompts for the app you connected. If the sign-in window does not open, allow pop-ups for Pactto (**Allow pop-ups to connect this app.**). Closing the sign-in window without finishing leaves the app unconnected, with nothing saved. ## Add a custom MCP server Any remote MCP server can be added by URL. 1. In the **Apps** window, click **Custom MCP server** at the bottom of the list. 2. Optionally enter a **Name**, then the **Server URL**. It must start with `https://`. 3. Under **Authentication**, choose **OAuth** (you sign in in a new window), **API key** (paste the key), or **None**. 4. Click **Connect**. Pactto discovers the server's tools and lists it under **Connected**. ## Approve what the assistant writes Reading from an app happens without asking. Before any write, such as creating or updating a Linear issue, the assistant shows a card in its reply with the app, where it will write, and each item it will create or change. - Click the action button (its label says what will happen) to approve. The card shows **Writing to** the app, then the result, with links such as **Open in Linear**. - Click **Cancel** to stop. Nothing is written. The approval covers all items in the card at once. Sending a new message while a card is waiting cancels the card, and nothing is written. Results from apps stay in the chat; nothing is added to the canvas by itself. ## Reconnect or disconnect - If an app asks you to sign in again, it shows **Reconnect** in the **Apps** window, and the chat shows **Reconnect** when you ask for it. Click it and sign in. - If the chat says the app is not connected (**Connect** the app **to use it here.**), click **Connect**. - To remove an app, open **Manage apps**, select it, and click **Disconnect**. There is no confirmation; the message says the app was disconnected. A custom server leaves the list. ## If something goes wrong - **Couldn't reach** the app: the server did not answer. Click **Try again**. Nothing was saved. - **Couldn't load apps.**: click **Try again**. - **Your profile doesn't allow connecting apps.**: your account cannot connect apps. Contact support if you think this is wrong. - **Enter a valid HTTPS URL.**: the custom server URL must use `https://`. - **Couldn't confirm what was written to** the app: the reply ended before Pactto saw the result. Check the app before you try again, so you do not create duplicates. ## Related guides - [Use the AI assistant in a room](https://www.pactto.com/help/ai-assistant.md): Click the AI Assistant button (sparkle icon, bottom right of the room), then type, dictate, or pick a skill with /; the assistant answers from the room's content, asks follow-up questions when it needs to, and can create docs, images, notes, comments, and more on the canvas. - [Connect Claude or ChatGPT to Pactto (MCP server)](https://www.pactto.com/help/connect-ai-assistant-mcp.md): Add the Pactto MCP server URL (https://live.pactto.com/mcp) to Claude, ChatGPT, or another assistant as a custom connector, sign in, and click Allow; it needs the Pro plan. - [Find, rename, and delete assistant chats](https://www.pactto.com/help/assistant-chat-history.md): Your AI assistant conversations are saved per room: click the chat title in the assistant header to open an earlier chat, click + (New chat) to start fresh, and use ••• to rename or delete a chat. - [Use skills in the AI assistant](https://www.pactto.com/help/assistant-skills.md): Type / in the assistant or click Skills to run a saved instruction such as /doc, /image, or /moodboard; open Manage skills to create your own skills, edit the built-in ones for yourself, or share a skill with the room.