AI connections
Connect Tenderwell to Claude or ChatGPT to search tenders and organizations directly from your conversations. Ask for opportunities by country, sector, status or deadline, then ask your assistant to read the details of a result.
Sign in to Tenderwell and open Profile → AI connections for the illustrated setup guide. This article describes the same setup for each assistant.
Before you start
- You need a Tenderwell account, which is free to create. See Registration if you do not have one.
- Results and usage limits follow the connected account's Tenderwell plan. Some fields may be filtered or anonymized. See Plans and subscriptions for plan information.
- You will sign in to Tenderwell and approve access during setup. No Tenderwell API key is needed.
- Check the assistant's plan and role requirements below before adding the connection.
Use these connection details:
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Tenderwell |
| Server URL | https://tenderwell.com/mcp |
| Authentication | OAuth / sign in to Tenderwell |
Claude: using the app
Set up the custom connector in Claude on the web or in the desktop app.
On Free, Pro and Max plans, add the connector from Customize → Connectors. Free accounts are limited to one custom connector.
On Team and Enterprise plans, an organization owner adds the connector in Organization settings → Connectors. Members then connect their own accounts from Customize → Connectors. Enterprise members with an appropriate custom role can also be permitted to add connectors.
1. Open Connectors
Open Claude and go to Customize → Connectors. If you are adding the connector for a Team or Enterprise organization, go to Organization settings → Connectors instead.
2. Add Tenderwell
Select + Add → Add custom connector. Organization owners select Add, hover over Custom, then choose Web.
Enter Tenderwell as the name and paste the server URL:
https://tenderwell.com/mcp
3. Add and connect
Complete the connector form and select Add. If Claude shows additional authentication screens, review the detected OAuth settings and continue with a sign-in option; Tenderwell requires authentication.
Open Customize → Connectors, find Tenderwell and select Connect. Members of Team and Enterprise organizations can start here once their owner has added the connector.
4. Sign in to Tenderwell
Sign in to Tenderwell, or create a free account, then select Allow access.
If you need to verify your email, complete verification, return to Claude and connect again.
5. Try your first search
Start a new chat. Open the + menu, then Connectors, and enable Tenderwell for the conversation. Ask Claude:
Find open road construction tenders in Kenya with a deadline this month.
Follow up by asking for the details of a tender from the results or by narrowing the country, sector or deadline.
ChatGPT: using the app
This section describes a custom MCP connection for a ChatGPT workspace. Complete the setup on ChatGPT web.
- Business: only workspace admins and owners can create and publish custom MCP connections.
- Enterprise/Edu: admins and owners can create connections. Members granted the Create plugins with MCPs permission can also create them. Only admins and owners can publish them for the workspace.
If you are another workspace member, ask an admin or owner to create, test and publish Tenderwell. Then follow Using a connection published by your admin.
For a personal ChatGPT account, this workspace guide does not describe your setup. Check OpenAI's current plan support, use the Claude instructions above, or follow the Codex CLI instructions below.
1. Open Plugins
If you have one of the eligible roles above, open ChatGPT on the web in your workspace. Go to Plugins, select the plus button, then Add custom MCP server.
2. Enter the connection details
Enter Tenderwell as the name and add a short description, such as “Search tenders and organizations”. Paste the server URL into the connection form:
https://tenderwell.com/mcp
Choose OAuth for authentication. No Tenderwell API key is needed.
3. Review and create
Review the connection details and risk warning. Confirm that you want to continue, select Create as a plugin, then review the discovered tools.
4. Connect your Tenderwell account
Install the resulting plugin and connect it when prompted. Sign in to Tenderwell, or create a free account, then select Allow access.
If you need to verify your email, complete verification, return to ChatGPT and connect again.
5. Try your first search
Start a new chat, type @ and select your Tenderwell plugin. Ask ChatGPT:
Find open road construction tenders in Kenya with a deadline this month.
After testing the connection, an admin or owner can publish it for the workspace so other members can use it.
Using a connection published by your admin
- Ask a workspace admin or owner to create, test and publish the Tenderwell connection.
- Open Plugins and find Tenderwell among the apps available to your workspace.
- Install it and connect your own Tenderwell account when prompted.
- Start a new chat, type
@and select Tenderwell before asking your question.
Simply enabling a general workspace setting does not give ordinary Business members permission to create custom MCP connections.
Using the terminal
These options are for developers who already use Claude Code or Codex CLI. Add the hosted MCP server and complete sign-in from the client.
Claude Code
Add Tenderwell:
claude mcp add --scope user --transport http tenderwell https://tenderwell.com/mcp
Start Claude Code:
claude
Inside Claude Code, run:
/mcp
Select tenderwell → Authenticate, then sign in to Tenderwell and approve access in your browser. Ask Claude Code to use Tenderwell to find tenders.
Codex CLI
Add Tenderwell and start sign-in:
codex mcp add tenderwell --url https://tenderwell.com/mcp
codex mcp login tenderwell
Sign in to Tenderwell and approve access in your browser. Start a new Codex session:
codex
Use /mcp inside Codex to check connected servers, then ask it to use Tenderwell to find tenders.
What you can do
The connection supports searching tenders and organizations, reading tender details, and reading organization details. You can ask about opportunities, contracts, awards, buyers and suppliers where the data is available to your account.
It does not currently support document downloads, saved searches, bookmarks, pipeline updates, billing or account changes.
Troubleshooting
I cannot find the option to add a connection
Check the plan and role requirements for your assistant. Claude Team and Enterprise members usually need an organization owner to add the connector first. ChatGPT Business members need an admin or owner to create and publish the connection; Enterprise/Edu members need the appropriate creation permission or a published connection.
Sign-in or email verification interrupted setup
Complete email verification first, then return to the assistant and start the connection again. Use the Tenderwell account whose plan you want the assistant to access.
My assistant is not using Tenderwell
Start a new conversation. In Claude, enable Tenderwell from the + → Connectors menu. In ChatGPT, type @ and select Tenderwell. In a terminal client, use /mcp to check the server connection.
Results are limited or anonymized
Results follow your Tenderwell plan. Adjust your search or review Plans and subscriptions if you need fuller data or higher limits.
For connection problems that persist, contact Tenderwell and include the assistant name and the error message. Do not send passwords or access tokens.
Official setup references
Assistant menus and plan availability can change. Refer to the providers' current instructions for account-specific availability: