Overview

The Hacker News MCP server provides real-time access to one of technology's most influential communities directly through your Sentry integration. This guide will help you understand how to monitor Hacker News updates, track relevant discussions, and stay informed about tech trends as they happen.

Understanding Real-Time Capabilities

The server connects directly to Hacker News APIs, providing live data rather than cached content. This means you're always working with current information—whether you're checking the latest front-page stories, monitoring new submissions, or following active comment threads. The real-time nature of the integration makes it ideal for staying on top of breaking tech news and emerging discussions.

Accessing Live Story Feeds

You can query different story feeds depending on what you want to monitor:

Top Stories surface the most popular submissions based on community voting. These represent what the Hacker News community considers most important right now.

New Stories show recent submissions as they arrive, giving you the earliest view of potential trends before they gain widespread attention.

Best Stories highlight content that has demonstrated lasting value, providing a curated view of high-quality discussions and articles.

Simply ask your AI assistant for the feed you're interested in—for example, "Show me the current top stories on Hacker News" or "What are the newest submissions?"

Monitoring Specific Topics

To track discussions relevant to your work, you can search for specific submissions or monitor comment threads. Request information about particular stories by asking about keywords or topics: "Find Hacker News discussions about React" or "Show me stories mentioning AI safety."

When you identify a relevant discussion, you can dive into comment threads to understand community perspectives. Comments often contain technical insights and expert opinions that are as valuable as the articles themselves.

Tracking User Activity

If you're interested in following specific contributors or thought leaders, you can access user profiles to see their recent submissions and comments. This is useful for monitoring influencers in your technology domain or understanding who's driving important conversations.

Practical Monitoring Workflows

For ongoing monitoring, establish regular check-ins by asking for top stories at specific intervals. You can also request updates on specific topics or track how particular submissions develop over time by revisiting their comment threads.

The server handles all API interactions automatically, so you simply make natural language requests and receive structured, current data ready for review or analysis.