Arlet

Connect U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) to ChatGPT

Query U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) directly from ChatGPT. Arlet links the two through one MCP connection and takes care of API keys.

This server connects your AI client to the Bureau of Economic Analysis API - the primary source for US GDP and the national accounts. BEA data is organized as datasets of named tables, and the table identifiers (T10101, T20600, ...) are not guessable, so the server provides a three-step flow.

Key features:

  • list_datasets: without arguments, all datasets (NIPA, Regional, ITA, IIP, GDPbyIndustry, InputOutput, ...); with a dataset name, that dataset's parameters and which are required.
  • list_parameter_values: enumerate a parameter's accepted values with keyword filtering - e.g. search NIPA TableName values for 'gross domestic product' to find T10101.
  • get_data: fetch a table by dataset + TableName with a frequency (annual/quarterly/monthly) and years, plus dataset-specific extra parameters such as LineCode and GeoFips for Regional data.

Division of labor with FRED: FRED is faster for a single headline series (GDP level or growth rate); BEA is the source when you need a full table with all its line items - the composition of GDP, income by state, trade in services by type.

Arlet obtains and manages the UserID, so there is nothing for you to sign up for or configure - just switch the server on. (Upstream throttles at 100 requests/minute per key, and that budget is shared across Arlet users.)

How to connect U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) to ChatGPT

  1. 1

    In the Arlet dashboard, open Data tools, find U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) and switch it on. No API key setup is needed.

  2. 2

    In ChatGPT, open Settings β†’ Plugins β†’ Browse plugins and click + at the top right.

  3. 3

    In the New Plugin form, enter "Arlet" as the Name, choose Server URL for Connection and enter https://mcp.arlet.dev/mcp/, pick OAuth for Authentication, check the risk acknowledgement and click Create.

  4. 4

    Open the Arlet plugin you created, click Sign in with Arlet, sign in with Google and click Allow. The connection is complete.

If the Plugins screen is not shown, turn on Developer mode under Settings β†’ Security and login.

Use U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) with other AI clients