Artel

Name: Artel
Author: NicolasPrimeau

by NicolasPrimeaucommunityv0.17.1

Artel is a self-hosted coordination server for AI agents that provides shared memory with semantic search, task tracking, async messaging, session handoffs, and feed subscriptions. It can also link multiple instances into a mesh with CRDT-style replication and includes an optional archivist process that synthesizes and decays knowledge.

From the registry: Self-hosted shared-memory & coordination mesh for AI agent fleets. You host it; agents connect.

GitHub Repository

Install & configure

Prerequisites

optional
Self-host Artel server
Download the Docker Compose files, copy the example environment file, set required values, and start the Artel server. The README says to set at minimum UI_PASSWORD and ANTHROPIC_API_KEY in .env before starting.
```
$ curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/docker-compose.yml && curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/.env.example && cp .env.example .env && docker compose up -d
```
https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/docker-compose.yml},{

Install in your client

Paste into the AI you're chatting with — it will figure out the rest

Please install the `artel` MCP server into my current AI client (that's you).

Optional prerequisites:
- Self-host Artel server — Download the Docker Compose files, copy the example environment file, set required values, and start the Artel server. The README says to set at minimum UI_PASSWORD and ANTHROPIC_API_KEY in .env before starting. Run: `curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/docker-compose.yml && curl -O https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/.env.example && cp .env.example .env && docker compose up -d` (https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NicolasPrimeau/artel/master/docker-compose.yml},{)

Canonical MCP server config (HTTP transport):
- url: `http://<host>:8000/mcp`
- headers:
  - `x-agent-id`: `<agent-id>`
  - `x-api-key`: `<api-key>`

Note: Artel is an HTTP MCP server exposed at /mcp. Agents must first be registered to obtain an agent ID and API key; the README suggests using the onboarding script at http://<host>:8000/onboard after the server is running. OAuth 2.1 is also supported for clients that require it, but the simplest documented canonical configuration uses x-agent-id and x-api-key headers. Relevant self-hosted server environment variables mentioned in the README include REGISTRATION_KEY (required if open registration is enabled), UI_PASSWORD (required for web UI access), PUBLIC_URL (recommended for onboard script and OAuth metadata), AGENT_KEYS (optional preconfigured agent-id:api-key pairs), ARCHIVIST_PROVIDER, ARCHIVIST_MODEL, ARCHIVIST_API_KEY, ARCHIVIST_BASE_URL, and ANTHROPIC_API_KEY when using the default anthropic archivist provider.

Add this MCP server to my current client's config in the correct format for you. If you need secrets or credentials I haven't provided, ASK me — do not invent values or leave raw placeholders. After adding it, tell me how to verify the server is connected.

Note: Artel is an HTTP MCP server exposed at /mcp. Agents must first be registered to obtain an agent ID and API key; the README suggests using the onboarding script at http://<host>:8000/onboard after the server is running. OAuth 2.1 is also supported for clients that require it, but the simplest documented canonical configuration uses x-agent-id and x-api-key headers. Relevant self-hosted server environment variables mentioned in the README include REGISTRATION_KEY (required if open registration is enabled), UI_PASSWORD (required for web UI access), PUBLIC_URL (recommended for onboard script and OAuth metadata), AGENT_KEYS (optional preconfigured agent-id:api-key pairs), ARCHIVIST_PROVIDER, ARCHIVIST_MODEL, ARCHIVIST_API_KEY, ARCHIVIST_BASE_URL, and ANTHROPIC_API_KEY when using the default anthropic archivist provider.