Can my agent automatically identify what kind of page a URL points to?

Yes. Use the 'analyze_page' tool. Diffbot uses ML to classify the URL as an article, product, image, video, or list, and returns the appropriate structured JSON payload automatically.

How do I extract only the main text from a blog post without comments?

Use the 'extract_article' tool and set the 'discussion' parameter to 'false'. The agent will retrieve the clean text and HTML body while explicitly ignoring any forum threads or review blocks on the page.

Can I use custom extraction rules I've defined in my Diffbot dashboard?

Absolutely. Use the 'extract_custom_api' tool. Provide your trained 'api_name' and the target URL. Diffbot will extract the data according to your specific structural ruleset natively.

Diffbot MCP Server for CrewAI 10 tools — connect in under 2 minutes

Name: Diffbot
Availability: InStock
Author: Vinkius

docs.crewai.com/mcp/overview

Built by Vinkius GDPR 10 Tools Framework

Connect your CrewAI agents to Diffbot through Vinkius, pass the Edge URL in the `mcps` parameter and every Diffbot tool is auto-discovered at runtime. No credentials to manage, no infrastructure to maintain.

Get MCP Server for AI Agents

ASK AI ABOUT THIS MCP SERVER

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Vinkius supports streamable HTTP and SSE.

python

from crewai import Agent, Task, Crew

agent = Agent(
    role="Diffbot Specialist",
    goal="Help users interact with Diffbot effectively",
    backstory=(
        "You are an expert at leveraging Diffbot tools "
        "for automation and data analysis."
    ),
    # Your Vinkius token. get it at cloud.vinkius.com
    mcps=["https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"],
)

task = Task(
    description=(
        "Explore all available tools in Diffbot "
        "and summarize their capabilities."
    ),
    agent=agent,
    expected_output=(
        "A detailed summary of 10 available tools "
        "and what they can do."
    ),
)

crew = Crew(agents=[agent], tasks=[task])
result = crew.kickoff()
print(result)

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* Every MCP server runs on Vinkius-managed infrastructure inside AWS - a purpose-built runtime with per-request V8 isolates, Ed25519 signed audit chains, and sub-40ms cold starts optimized for native MCP execution. See our infrastructure

About Diffbot MCP Server

Connect your Diffbot account to any AI agent and take full control of your automated web data extraction through natural conversation.

When paired with CrewAI, Diffbot becomes a first-class tool in your multi-agent workflows. Each agent in the crew can call Diffbot tools autonomously, one agent queries data, another analyzes results, a third compiles reports, all orchestrated through Vinkius with zero configuration overhead.

What you can do

Automated Page Classification — Use the Analyze API to automatically determine if a page is an article, product, or list and extract structured data natively
Article Extraction — Extract news, blog, or article content into clean HTML and plain text, identifying authors, dates, and categorical classifications limitlessly
E-commerce Intelligence — Capture structured product details including precise pricing, brand mappings, SKU, and specifications across any web boundary
Media & Social Auditing — Extract primary images and embedded video metadata, or analyze forum threads and reviews with automated sentiment scoring
List & Search Scraping — Identify bounded directories and search results on any page to extract arrays of item titles and links strictly
Job Posting Analysis — Retrieve explicitly mapped job titles, employers, and salary vectors from recruitment pages to monitor market trends
Custom Rule Execution — Execute user-defined custom extraction logic by bridging raw URLs to your trained Diffbot dashboard rulesets

The Diffbot MCP Server exposes 10 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to CrewAI in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.

How to Connect Diffbot to CrewAI via MCP

Follow these steps to integrate the Diffbot MCP Server with CrewAI.

Install CrewAI

Run pip install crewai

Replace the token

Replace [YOUR_TOKEN_HERE] with your Vinkius token from cloud.vinkius.com

Customize the agent

Adjust the role, goal, and backstory to fit your use case

Run the crew

Run python crew.py. CrewAI auto-discovers 10 tools from Diffbot

Why Use CrewAI with the Diffbot MCP Server

CrewAI Multi-Agent Orchestration Framework provides unique advantages when paired with Diffbot through the Model Context Protocol.

Multi-agent collaboration lets you decompose complex workflows into specialized roles, one agent researches, another analyzes, a third generates reports, each with access to MCP tools

CrewAI's native MCP integration requires zero adapter code: pass Vinkius Edge URL directly in the `mcps` parameter and agents auto-discover every available tool at runtime

Built-in task delegation and shared memory mean agents can pass context between steps without manual state management, enabling multi-hop reasoning across tool calls

Sequential and hierarchical crew patterns map naturally to real-world workflows: enumerate subdomains → analyze DNS history → check WHOIS records → compile findings into actionable reports

Diffbot + CrewAI Use Cases

Practical scenarios where CrewAI combined with the Diffbot MCP Server delivers measurable value.

Automated multi-step research: a reconnaissance agent queries Diffbot for raw data, then a second analyst agent cross-references findings and flags anomalies. all without human handoff

Scheduled intelligence reports: set up a crew that periodically queries Diffbot, analyzes trends over time, and generates executive briefings in markdown or PDF format

Multi-source enrichment pipelines: chain Diffbot tools with other MCP servers in the same crew, letting agents correlate data across multiple providers in a single workflow

Compliance and audit automation: a compliance agent queries Diffbot against predefined policy rules, generates deviation reports, and routes findings to the appropriate team

Diffbot MCP Tools for CrewAI (10)

These 10 tools become available when you connect Diffbot to CrewAI via MCP:

analyze_page

Diffbot uses ML to determine if the page is an article, product, image, video, event, list, or job, and returns the appropriate structured JSON. Excellent generalized entry point. Automatically classify and extract page data using Diffbot Analyze API

extract_article

Pass optional discussion=false to skip extracting comments. Extract news, blog, or article content using Diffbot Article API

extract_custom_api

Diffbot will extract data according to your custom ruleset. Extract using a user-defined custom Diffbot API

extract_discussion

Extract forum threads, reviews, or comments using Diffbot Discussion API

extract_event

Extract event schedules and details using Diffbot Event API

extract_image

Extract main images from a page using Diffbot Image API

extract_job

Extract job postings using Diffbot Job API

extract_list

Extract lists or search results using Diffbot List API

extract_product

Extract e-commerce product details using Diffbot Product API

extract_video

Extract video content and metadata using Diffbot Video API

Example Prompts for Diffbot in CrewAI

Ready-to-use prompts you can give your CrewAI agent to start working with Diffbot immediately.

"Extract the article content from: https://techcrunch.com/2024/01/01/ai-trends"

"What is the price and SKU for this product: [E-commerce URL]"

"Search for news about 'OpenAI' using: [News List URL]"

Troubleshooting Diffbot MCP Server with CrewAI

Common issues when connecting Diffbot to CrewAI through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.

MCP tools not discovered

Ensure the Edge URL is correct. CrewAI connects lazily when the crew starts. check console output.

Agent not using tools

Make the task description specific. Instead of "do something", say "Use the available tools to list contacts".

Timeout errors

CrewAI has a 10s connection timeout by default. Ensure your network can reach the Edge URL.

Rate limiting or 429 errors

Vinkius enforces per-token rate limits. Check your subscription tier and request quota in the dashboard. Upgrade if you need higher throughput.

Diffbot + CrewAI FAQ

Common questions about integrating Diffbot MCP Server with CrewAI.

How does CrewAI discover and connect to MCP tools?

CrewAI connects to MCP servers lazily. when the crew starts, each agent resolves its MCP URLs and fetches the tool catalog via the standard tools/list method. This means tools are always fresh and reflect the server's current capabilities. No tool schemas need to be hardcoded.

Can different agents in the same crew use different MCP servers?

Yes. Each agent has its own mcps list, so you can assign specific servers to specific roles. For example, a reconnaissance agent might use a domain intelligence server while an analysis agent uses a vulnerability database server.

What happens when an MCP tool call fails during a crew run?

CrewAI wraps tool failures as context for the agent. The LLM receives the error message and can decide to retry with different parameters, fall back to a different tool, or mark the task as partially complete. This resilience is critical for production workflows.

Can CrewAI agents call multiple MCP tools in parallel?

CrewAI agents execute tool calls sequentially within a single reasoning step. However, you can run multiple agents in parallel using process=Process.parallel, each calling different MCP tools concurrently. This is ideal for workflows where separate data sources need to be queried simultaneously.

Can I run CrewAI crews on a schedule (cron)?

Yes. CrewAI crews are standard Python scripts, so you can invoke them via cron, Airflow, Celery, or any task scheduler. The crew.kickoff() method runs synchronously by default, making it straightforward to integrate into existing pipelines.