Prompt Learning MCP Server

Stateful prompt optimization that learns over time.

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that optimizes your prompts using research-backed techniques (APE, OPRO, DSPy patterns) and learns from performance history via embedding-based retrieval.

Features

• 🧠 Smart Optimization: Uses actual LLM-based evaluation, not heuristics
• 📚 Learns Over Time: Stores prompt performance in vector database
• 🔍 RAG-Powered: Retrieves similar high-performing prompts
• ⚡ Pattern-Based Quick Wins: Instant improvements without API calls
• 📊 Analytics: Track what's working across domains

Quick Install

curl -fsSL https://someclaudeskills.com/install/prompt-learning.sh | bash

Or manually:

cd ~/mcp-servers/prompt-learning
npm install
npm run build
npm run setup

Requirements

• Node.js 18+
• Docker (for Qdrant and Redis)
• OpenAI API key (for embeddings)

Usage

Once installed, use these tools in Claude Code:

optimize_prompt

Optimize a prompt using pattern-based and RAG-based techniques:

"optimize this prompt: summarize the document"

Returns the optimized prompt with improvement details.

retrieve_prompts

Find similar high-performing prompts:

"find similar prompts for: code review feedback"

record_feedback

Record how a prompt performed (enables learning):

"record that my last prompt succeeded with quality score 0.9"

suggest_improvements

Get quick suggestions without full optimization:

"suggest improvements for this prompt: [your prompt]"

get_analytics

View performance trends:

"show prompt analytics for the last 30 days"

How It Works

Cold Start (No History)

1. Pattern-based improvements: Adds structure, chain-of-thought, constraints
2. OPRO-style iteration: LLM generates candidates, evaluates, selects best
3. APE-style generation: Creates multiple instruction variants

Warm Start (With History)

1. Embed the prompt: Creates vector representation
2. Retrieve similar: Finds high-performing prompts from database
3. Learn from winners: Synthesizes improvements from what worked
4. Iterate with feedback: Uses evaluation to guide optimization

Evaluation

All prompts are scored by an LLM evaluator on:

• Clarity (25%): How unambiguous
• Specificity (25%): Appropriate guidance level
• Completeness (20%): Covers all requirements
• Structure (15%): Well-organized
• Effectiveness (15%): Likely to produce desired output

Architecture

Claude Code
     │
     │ MCP Protocol
     ▼
┌─────────────────────────────┐
│  prompt-learning MCP Server │
│                             │
│  Tools:                     │
│  • optimize_prompt          │
│  • retrieve_prompts         │
│  • record_feedback          │
│  • suggest_improvements     │
│  • get_analytics            │
└─────────┬───────────────────┘
          │
    ┌─────┴─────┐
    ▼           ▼
┌───────┐   ┌───────┐
│Qdrant │   │ Redis │
│(Vector│   │(Cache)│
│  DB)  │   │       │
└───────┘   └───────┘

Configuration

Claude Code Config (~/.claude.json)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "prompt-learning": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["~/mcp-servers/prompt-learning/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "VECTOR_DB_URL": "http://localhost:6333",
        "REDIS_URL": "redis://localhost:6379",
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "sk-..."
      }
    }
  }
}

Environment Variables

Development

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Run in development mode
npm run dev

# Build for production
npm run build

# Run setup (starts Docker, initializes DB)
npm run setup

# Run tests
npm test

Troubleshooting

MCP Server Not Starting

Check Docker containers are running:

docker ps | grep prompt-learning

Vector DB Connection Failed

# Check Qdrant health
curl http://localhost:6333/health

# Restart Qdrant
docker restart prompt-learning-qdrant

No Improvements Seen

• Ensure OPENAI_API_KEY is set correctly
• Check Claude Code logs: ~/.claude/logs/mcp.log
• Try with a simple prompt first

Research Foundation

This server implements techniques from:

• APE (Zhou et al., 2022): Automatic Prompt Engineer
• OPRO (Yang et al., 2023): Optimization by Prompting
• DSPy (Khattab et al., 2023): Programmatic prompt optimization
• Contextual Retrieval (Anthropic, 2024): Enhanced embedding retrieval

License

MIT

Links

• Documentation: https://www.someclaudeskills.com/skills/automatic-stateful-prompt-improver
• Skill Definition: Part of the Some Claude Skills collection
• GitHub: https://github.com/erichowens/prompt-learning-mcp
• Issues: https://github.com/erichowens/prompt-learning-mcp/issues