How to integrate Ashby MCP with Google ADK

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Introduction

This guide walks you through connecting Ashby to Google ADK using the Composio tool router. By the end, you'll have a working Ashby agent that can list all candidates for open roles, post a new job opening for engineering, summarize candidates in interview stage, export recent hiring activity to csv through natural language commands.

This guide will help you understand how to give your Google ADK agent real control over a Ashby account through Composio's Ashby MCP server.

Before we dive in, let's take a quick look at the key ideas and tools involved.

TL;DR

Here's what you'll learn:
  • Get a Ashby account set up and connected to Composio
  • Install the Google ADK and Composio packages
  • Create a Composio Tool Router session for Ashby
  • Build an agent that connects to Ashby through MCP
  • Interact with Ashby using natural language

What is Google ADK?

Google ADK (Agents Development Kit) is Google's framework for building AI agents powered by Gemini models. It provides tools for creating agents that can use external services through the Model Context Protocol.

Key features include:

  • Gemini Integration: Native support for Google's Gemini models
  • MCP Toolset: Built-in support for Model Context Protocol tools
  • Streamable HTTP: Connect to external services through streamable HTTP
  • CLI and Web UI: Run agents via command line or web interface

What is the Ashby MCP server, and what's possible with it?

The Ashby MCP server is an implementation of the Model Context Protocol that connects your AI agent and assistants like Claude, Cursor, etc directly to your Ashby account. It provides structured and secure access to your recruiting data, so your agent can perform actions like managing job postings, tracking candidate progress, scheduling interviews, and generating hiring reports on your behalf.

  • Automated job posting management: Easily create, update, or close job listings across your organization with direct agent assistance.
  • Candidate pipeline tracking: Have your agent fetch, organize, and update candidate progress through every stage of the hiring process.
  • Interview scheduling and coordination: Let your agent schedule interviews, send calendar invites, and manage interviewer assignments to streamline the process.
  • Data-driven hiring analytics: Generate reports and insights about your hiring funnel, candidate sources, and time-to-hire with a simple agent request.
  • Centralized communication with applicants: Enable your agent to send status updates, feedback, or reminders to candidates, keeping everyone in the loop automatically.

Supported Tools & Triggers

Tools
Add Candidate TagAdd a tag to a candidate.
Change Application SourceChange the source attribution of an application.
Change Application StageMove an application to a different interview stage.
Create ApplicationCreate a new application for a candidate to a specific job.
Create CandidateCreate a new candidate in the system.
Create Candidate TagCreate a new candidate tag.
Create DepartmentCreate a new department.
Create JobCreate a new job opening.
Get API Key InfoRetrieve information about the current API key, including associated organization, user details, and permissions.
Get Application InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific application by its ID.
Get Candidate InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific candidate by their ID.
Get Department InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific department by its ID.
Get Interview InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific interview type by its ID.
Get Job InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific job by its ID.
Get Job Posting InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific job posting by its ID.
Get Location InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific location by its ID.
Get Opening InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific opening (job requisition) by its ID.
Get User InfoRetrieve detailed information about a specific user by their ID.
List Application FeedbackRetrieve all feedback submissions for an application.
List Application HistoryRetrieve the complete history of stage transitions for an application.
List ApplicationsRetrieve a list of applications.
List ApprovalsRetrieve a list of approvals (offer approvals, job approvals, etc.
List Archive ReasonsRetrieve a list of all archive reasons.
List Candidate NotesRetrieve all notes for a specific candidate.
List Candidate ProjectsRetrieve all projects associated with a candidate.
List CandidatesRetrieve a list of candidates.
List Candidate TagsRetrieve a list of all candidate tags.
List Close ReasonsRetrieve a list of all close reasons for jobs and openings.
List Communication TemplatesRetrieve a list of all communication templates.
List Custom FieldsRetrieve a list of all custom field definitions.
List DepartmentsRetrieve a list of all departments in the organization.
List Feedback Form DefinitionsRetrieve a list of all feedback form definitions.
List Interviewer PoolsRetrieve a list of all interviewer pools.
List Interview PlansRetrieve a list of interview plans.
List InterviewsRetrieve a list of interviews.
List Interview SchedulesRetrieve a list of interview schedules.
List Interview Stage GroupsRetrieve a list of interview stage groups.
List Job BoardsRetrieve a list of job boards.
List Job PostingsRetrieve a list of job postings.
List JobsRetrieve a list of jobs.
List Job TemplatesRetrieve a list of job templates.
List LocationsRetrieve a list of all locations.
List OffersRetrieve a list of job offers.
List OpeningsRetrieve a list of openings (job requisitions).
List ProjectsRetrieve a list of all projects.
List SourcesRetrieve a list of all candidate sources.
List Source Tracking LinksRetrieve a list of all source tracking links.
List Survey Form DefinitionsRetrieve a list of all survey form definitions.
List UsersRetrieve a list of all users in the organization.
Search CandidatesSearch for candidates by email or name.
Search JobsSearch for jobs by title.
Search ProjectsSearch for projects by title.
Search UsersSearch for users by email or name.
Set Job StatusSet the status of a job (Open, Closed, Draft).
Update ApplicationUpdate custom fields or other properties of an application.
Update CandidateUpdate candidate information such as name, position, company, or school.
Update DepartmentUpdate department information such as name.
Update JobUpdate job details such as title and other properties.
Update Job PostingUpdate job posting details such as title or listing status.

What is the Composio tool router, and how does it fit here?

What is Tool Router?

Composio's Tool Router helps agents find the right tools for a task at runtime. You can plug in multiple toolkits (like Gmail, HubSpot, and GitHub), and the agent will identify the relevant app and action to complete multi-step workflows. This can reduce token usage and improve the reliability of tool calls. Read more here: Getting started with Tool Router

The tool router generates a secure MCP URL that your agents can access to perform actions.

How the Tool Router works

The Tool Router follows a three-phase workflow:

  1. Discovery: Searches for tools matching your task and returns relevant toolkits with their details.
  2. Authentication: Checks for active connections. If missing, creates an auth config and returns a connection URL via Auth Link.
  3. Execution: Executes the action using the authenticated connection.

Step-by-step Guide

Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:
  • A Google API key for Gemini models
  • A Composio account and API key
  • Python 3.9 or later installed
  • Basic familiarity with Python

Getting API Keys for Google and Composio

Google API Key
  • Go to Google AI Studio and create an API key.
  • Copy the key and keep it safe. You will put this in GOOGLE_API_KEY.
Composio API Key and User ID
  • Log in to the Composio dashboard.
  • Go to Settings → API Keys and copy your Composio API key. Use this for COMPOSIO_API_KEY.
  • Decide on a stable user identifier to scope sessions, often your email or a user ID. Use this for COMPOSIO_USER_ID.

Install dependencies

bash
pip install google-adk composio-google python-dotenv

Inside your virtual environment, install the required packages.

What's happening:

  • google-adk is Google's Agents Development Kit
  • composio connects your agent to Ashby via MCP
  • composio-google provides the Google ADK provider
  • python-dotenv loads environment variables

Set up ADK project

bash
adk create my_agent

Set up a new Google ADK project.

What's happening:

  • This creates an agent folder with a root agent file and .env file

Set environment variables

bash
GOOGLE_API_KEY=your-google-api-key
COMPOSIO_API_KEY=your-composio-api-key
COMPOSIO_USER_ID=your-user-id-or-email

Save all your credentials in the .env file.

What's happening:

  • GOOGLE_API_KEY authenticates with Google's Gemini models
  • COMPOSIO_API_KEY authenticates with Composio
  • COMPOSIO_USER_ID identifies the user for session management

Import modules and validate environment

python
import os
import warnings

from composio import Composio
from composio_google import GoogleProvider
from dotenv import load_dotenv
from google.adk.agents.llm_agent import Agent
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_session_manager import StreamableHTTPConnectionParams
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_toolset import McpToolset

load_dotenv()

warnings.filterwarnings("ignore", message=".*BaseAuthenticatedTool.*")

GOOGLE_API_KEY = os.getenv("GOOGLE_API_KEY")
COMPOSIO_API_KEY = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
COMPOSIO_USER_ID = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_USER_ID")

if not GOOGLE_API_KEY:
    raise ValueError("GOOGLE_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
if not COMPOSIO_API_KEY:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
if not COMPOSIO_USER_ID:
    raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set in the environment.")
What's happening:
  • os reads environment variables
  • Composio is the main Composio SDK client
  • GoogleProvider declares that you are using Google ADK as the agent runtime
  • Agent is the Google ADK LLM agent class
  • McpToolset lets the ADK agent call MCP tools over HTTP

Create Composio client and Tool Router session

python
print("Initializing Composio client...")
composio_client = Composio(api_key=COMPOSIO_API_KEY, provider=GoogleProvider())

print("Creating Composio session...")
composio_session = composio_client.create(
    user_id=COMPOSIO_USER_ID,
    toolkits=["ashby"],
)

COMPOSIO_MCP_URL = composio_session.mcp.url
print(f"Composio MCP HTTP URL: {COMPOSIO_MCP_URL}")
What's happening:
  • Authenticates to Composio with your API key
  • Declares Google ADK as the provider
  • Spins up a short-lived MCP endpoint for your user and selected toolkit
  • Stores the MCP HTTP URL for the ADK MCP integration

Set up the McpToolset and create the Agent

python
print("Creating Composio toolset for the agent...")
composio_toolset = McpToolset(
    connection_params=StreamableHTTPConnectionParams(
        url=COMPOSIO_MCP_URL,
        headers={"x-api-key": os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")}
    )
)

root_agent = Agent(
    model="gemini-2.5-pro",
    name="composio_agent",
    description="An agent that uses Ashby tools to perform actions.",
    instruction=(
        "You are a helpful assistant connected to Composio. "
        "You have the following tools available: "
        "COMPOSIO_SEARCH_TOOLS, COMPOSIO_MULTI_EXECUTE_TOOL, "
        "COMPOSIO_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS, COMPOSIO_REMOTE_BASH_TOOL, COMPOSIO_REMOTE_WORKBENCH. "
        "Use these tools to help users with Ashby operations."
    ),
    tools=[composio_toolset],
)

print("\nAgent setup complete. You can now run this agent directly ;)")
What's happening:
  • Connects the ADK agent to the Composio MCP endpoint through McpToolset
  • Uses Gemini as the model powering the agent
  • Lists exact tool names in instruction to reduce misnamed tool calls

Run the agent

bash
# Run in CLI mode
adk run my_agent

# Or run in web UI mode
adk web
Execute the agent from the project root. The web command opens a web portal where you can chat with the agent. What's happening:
  • adk run runs the agent in CLI mode
  • adk web opens a web UI for interactive testing

Complete Code

Here's the complete code to get you started with Ashby and Google ADK:

python
import os
import warnings

from composio import Composio
from composio_google import GoogleProvider
from dotenv import load_dotenv
from google.adk.agents.llm_agent import Agent
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_session_manager import StreamableHTTPConnectionParams
from google.adk.tools.mcp_tool.mcp_toolset import McpToolset

def main():
    try:
        load_dotenv()

        warnings.filterwarnings("ignore", message=".*BaseAuthenticatedTool.*")

        GOOGLE_API_KEY = os.getenv("GOOGLE_API_KEY")
        COMPOSIO_API_KEY = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")
        COMPOSIO_USER_ID = os.getenv("COMPOSIO_USER_ID")

        if not GOOGLE_API_KEY:
            raise ValueError("GOOGLE_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
        if not COMPOSIO_API_KEY:
            raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_API_KEY is not set in the environment.")
        if not COMPOSIO_USER_ID:
            raise ValueError("COMPOSIO_USER_ID is not set in the environment.")

        print("Initializing Composio client...")
        composio_client = Composio(api_key=COMPOSIO_API_KEY, provider=GoogleProvider())

        print("Creating Composio session...")
        composio_session = composio_client.create(
            user_id=COMPOSIO_USER_ID,
            toolkits=["ashby"],
        )

        COMPOSIO_MCP_URL = composio_session.mcp.url
        print(f"Composio MCP HTTP URL: {COMPOSIO_MCP_URL}")

        print("Creating Composio toolset for the agent...")
        composio_toolset = McpToolset(
            connection_params=StreamableHTTPConnectionParams(
                url=COMPOSIO_MCP_URL,
                headers={"x-api-key": os.getenv("COMPOSIO_API_KEY")}
            )
        )

        root_agent = Agent(
            model="gemini-2.5-pro",
            name="composio_agent",
            description="An agent that uses Ashby tools to perform actions.",
            instruction=(
                "You are a helpful assistant connected to Composio. "
                "You have the following tools available: "
                "COMPOSIO_SEARCH_TOOLS, COMPOSIO_MULTI_EXECUTE_TOOL, "
                "COMPOSIO_MANAGE_CONNECTIONS, COMPOSIO_REMOTE_BASH_TOOL, COMPOSIO_REMOTE_WORKBENCH. "
                "Use these tools to help users with Ashby operations."
            ),
            tools=[composio_toolset],
        )

        print("\nAgent setup complete. You can now run this agent directly ;)")

    except Exception as e:
        print(f"\nAn error occurred during agent setup: {e}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

Conclusion

You've successfully integrated Ashby with the Google ADK through Composio's MCP Tool Router. Your agent can now interact with Ashby using natural language commands.

Key takeaways:

  • The Tool Router approach dynamically routes requests to the appropriate Ashby tools
  • Environment variables keep your credentials secure and separate from code
  • Clear agent instructions reduce tool calling errors
  • The ADK web UI provides an interactive interface for testing and development

You can extend this setup by adding more toolkits to the toolkits array in your session configuration.

How to build Ashby MCP Agent with another framework

FAQ

What are the differences in Tool Router MCP and Ashby MCP?

With a standalone Ashby MCP server, the agents and LLMs can only access a fixed set of Ashby tools tied to that server. However, with the Composio Tool Router, agents can dynamically load tools from Ashby and many other apps based on the task at hand, all through a single MCP endpoint.

Can I use Tool Router MCP with Google ADK?

Yes, you can. Google ADK fully supports MCP integration. You get structured tool calling, message history handling, and model orchestration while Tool Router takes care of discovering and serving the right Ashby tools.

Can I manage the permissions and scopes for Ashby while using Tool Router?

Yes, absolutely. You can configure which Ashby scopes and actions are allowed when connecting your account to Composio. You can also bring your own OAuth credentials or API configuration so you keep full control over what the agent can do.

How safe is my data with Composio Tool Router?

All sensitive data such as tokens, keys, and configuration is fully encrypted at rest and in transit. Composio is SOC 2 Type 2 compliant and follows strict security practices so your Ashby data and credentials are handled as safely as possible.

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Context
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