Connect Qlik MCP server to Perplexity.ai

[Dave_Channon]

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard that lets AI assistants connect to external data sources and tools.

Connecting Perplexity to the Qlik MCP server means you can get Perplexity’s real-time web search and reasoning alongside Qlik’s governed analytics data in a single conversation, or have it take action to manage operations within your Qlik Cloud tenant.

What you'll need

• A Qlik Cloud tenant with the MCP server enabled by a tenant administrator. Review Deploying Qlik MCP server for a tenant for details.
• A Perplexity Pro, Max, or Enterprise account (accurate at time of writing). If using an enterprise account, you must have permission to create new connectors, or ask an administrator to help.
• Tenant administrator access in Qlik Cloud to create an OAuth client.

How the Qlik MCP server works

A short orientation before touching any settings:

• The MCP server URL follows the pattern https://<your tenant URL>/api/ai/mcp.
• All connections are user-bound: access tokens are scoped and time-limited, and data access is enforced by the same access controls as when a user uses the interface directly.

See Qlik MCP server for details.

Which OAuth client type should I use?

Before creating the OAuth client in Qlik Cloud, decide which client type fits your situation. For connecting Perplexity, the relevant choice is between Web and Native.

Web client (recommended for most organisations)

A Web client issues a client secret in addition to a client ID. The secret is stored server-side on Perplexity and is never exposed to the browser or end user. This makes it the more secure option: even if someone obtains the client ID, they cannot complete the OAuth flow without the secret.

Use a Web client when:

• You are rolling out the connector to a team or organisation and want an additional layer of credential protection.
• Your organisation’s security policy requires confidential client flows.
• You have an admin who can manage secret rotation if needed.

Copy the client secret at creation time. Qlik will not show it again. For a Web client, you will paste it into Perplexity during connector configuration.

Native client (lightweight public client)

A Native client does not use a client secret. It relies on the OAuth PKCE flow, which protects against code interception without requiring a shared secret. This is a valid and commonly used pattern for public clients.

Use a Native client when:

• You want the simplest possible setup with no secret to manage or rotate.
• Your organisation permits public client flows for internal tooling.

At a glance

	Web client	Native client
Client secret	Yes, stored server-side on Perplexity	No
Setup complexity	Slightly higher	Minimal
PKCE	Optional	Required

Both client types work with Perplexity’s custom remote connector flow.

Step 1: Prepare the OAuth client in Qlik Cloud

The tenant administrator creates the OAuth client:

5. In the Qlik Cloud Administration activity center, go to OAuth and click Create new.
6. Select Web or Native as determined above.
7. Add the required scopes: user_default and mcp:execute.
   Optionally add offline_access to reduce re-authentication frequency to once every 30 days from the default 6-hour expiry.
8. For the redirect URL, enter Perplexity’s OAuth callback:
   
   
   • https://www.perplexity.ai/rest/connections/oauth_callback
   • For organisations on the Perplexity Enterprise subdomain, use https://enterprise.perplexity.ai/rest/connections/oauth_callback instead.
     
     See Adding Custom Remote Connectors for more details.
9. If using a Web client, copy the client secret immediately. Qlik will not show it again.
10. Note down the Client ID.

See Deploying Qlik MCP server for a tenant for details. 

Step 2: Add the connector in Perplexity

1. Go to Account settings > Connectors and click + Custom connector, then select Remote.
2. Fill in the required fields:
   • Name: Qlik Cloud (or your tenant name).
   • MCP Server URL: https://<your-hostname>.<your-region>.qlikcloud.com/api/ai/mcp
   • Authentication: OAuth 2.0. Enter the Client ID from step 1. For a Web client, also enter the Client Secret. For a Native client, leave the secret field blank.
   • Transport: Streamable HTTP.
3. Acknowledge the data-sharing warning and click Add.
4. Navigate back to the connector listing and find the new connector.
5. Click Add Connector on the connector card to start the Qlik OAuth flow, sign in to your Qlik Cloud tenant, and click Approve.

By clicking Approve, you are authorising the Qlik server to share your Qlik Cloud data with Perplexity, a third-party system not managed by Qlik. Check your organisation's AI data-sharing policies before proceeding.

If the Qlik MCP server supports OAuth discovery (via /.well-known/oauth-authorization-server), Perplexity can detect endpoints and scopes automatically, and you may not need to enter them manually.

Step 3: Enable the connector and test it

Toggle the connector on under Sources in a Perplexity thread. You can also type the connector name, and it’ll suggest adding it to the thread.

Try these example prompts to confirm the connection is working:

• “What apps are available in my Qlik Cloud tenant?”
• “Summarise the key metrics from [your data product name].”
• “What does [KPI name] look like this month compared to last?”

Organisation members can add custom remote connectors if admins have enabled them. Only admins can share a connector with the entire organisation, done from the Permissions screen in Enterprise settings.