Buoy: MCP server, setup and security

What Buoy does

According to its repository: “Let AI agents read and drive a running React Native or Flutter app through Buoy's devtools.”

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is a standard plug between an AI agent and an outside service: once the server is connected, its tools show up in the agent, which decides when to call them. Buoy is listed under Developer tools, a category of 475 servers in the directory, where it ranks #47 by stars.

Topics declared by the repository: devtools, expo, react-native, android, debugging, developer-tools.

Installing and connecting Buoy

Distribution modes declared in the official MCP registry:

• npm package (Node.js, usually started with npx)

It works with any MCP-compatible client (Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Codex and most recent agents). You add one entry to the client's MCP configuration: server name, start command or URL, environment variables.

Security: what to check

Connecting an MCP server means installing software that talks straight to your agent: it runs with your rights and the model trusts its tool descriptions. The risk therefore depends on what it can touch and how far its code can be trusted.

Points found for Buoy:

• No licence: without a licence the code is not legally reusable, even if it is public. Avoid it in a company setting without the author's agreement.

Good practice: grant only the rights needed (least privilege), require human approval for irreversible actions, and run the AI agent security check.

Project activity and maintenance

Created on February 19, 2024, the Buoy-gg/buoy repository has 691 stars and 5 forks, with 4 open issues. It has more stars than 90% of the servers in the directory. It received changes this month. Version published in the registry: 7.0.41 (September 28, 2026).

Stars measure attention, not quality: a recent, heavily promoted project can collect them fast, while a useful but niche server will have few.