This page is for IT departments. It explains how UC connects to an AI assistant, what passes between them, and what UC records.
Beta
The connection is in Beta. Details on this page may change before it is generally available. If you have questions, write to John at john.magee@understand-culture.com.
The standard
UC connects through MCP, the Model Context Protocol. MCP is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to outside sources. UC runs a remote MCP server, and your assistant connects to it over HTTPS.
Assistants that accept remote MCP connectors, such as Claude and ChatGPT, can connect directly. Microsoft Copilot can connect through Copilot Studio.
What UC offers
UC’s server offers two tools. The first returns the list of countries and topics that UC covers. The second takes a country and a topic and returns UC’s analysis for that combination.
Each tool carries a short description. The assistant reads it to decide when a question calls for UC.
What your assistant sends
The assistant sends UC a country and a topic, and nothing else. It does not send the user’s question, the conversation, files or any other content.
Most assistants display each call and its inputs to the user, so you can check what was sent.
What UC sends back
UC sends back the analysis as plain text, together with a link to the page on understand-culture.com where it is published.
The response begins with a short note to the assistant on how to use the material. It asks the assistant to answer from the research and to say plainly when the research does not cover the question.
The note is plain text, and you can read it in the response like the rest. If UC does not cover a country or a topic, the response says so.
How the user signs in
The connection uses OAuth, the standard sign-in method for connectors. The user signs in to his UC account in the browser and approves the connection.
The assistant then receives a token that identifies his account. The user’s password is never passed to the assistant.
The user can withdraw the token on his UC account page at any time. Where an assistant does not support this sign-in, the account page provides a key instead.
What UC records
For each call, UC records the account, the time, the country and the topic. UC uses this record for billing and to see which research is used.
UC does not receive or store the user’s question or conversation. Details are in the privacy policy on the Contact Page.
What UC cannot reach
UC has no access to your systems, your files or your assistant’s conversations. It only answers the requests your assistant sends. If UC does not answer, your assistant writes its reply without it.
Where it runs
UC’s server is hosted by United Domains in Germany.
Limits
Each account has a daily ceiling on calls. The ceiling protects the service and the research.
Approving UC
To approve UC, your administrator adds the connector address to the list of allowed connectors for your assistant. The address is shown on the user’s UC account page.
If you need more information for a security review, write to John at john.magee@understand-culture.com.
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