Connect Dapper to Gemini CLI

Before you start

Account

A personal Google account, or a Workspace one. No Google Cloud project and no credit card.

Plan

Free, with an API key. On 18 June 2026 Google moved the free tier and Google One users to Antigravity CLI, so “Sign in with Google” fails on an unpaid personal account — the CLI answers “This client is no longer supported for Code Assist for individuals”. The path that does run is a Google AI Studio API key, which has a free tier of its own. On AI Pro, Ultra or an organization account, Google sign-in still works.

Where it works

Terminal only. The Gemini app now accepts custom MCP servers on AI Pro or Ultra in the US (see Gemini app); for companies, see Gemini Enterprise.

Permissions

None for a personal account. On Workspace, whatever policy your admin sets for Gemini Code Assist applies.

Step by step

1. 1

   Install the CLI

   Needs Node 20 or newer. To try it without installing: npx https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli

   npm install -g @google/gemini-cli

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2. 2

   Run gemini and pick how to authenticate

   The first run opens the “Get started” menu. On an unpaid personal account, choose “Use Gemini API Key” and paste one from aistudio.google.com — “Sign in with Google” there returns the Antigravity error you can see in the clip. On AI Pro, Ultra or an organization account, choose “Sign in with Google” and a browser opens.

   gemini

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3. 3

   Add Dapper to settings.json

   Open ~/.gemini/settings.json (or .gemini/settings.json inside a project) and add the block next to whatever is already there. Watch the key: on HTTP transport Gemini reads httpUrl, not url — with url the server is ignored without an error.

   {
     "mcpServers": {
       "dapper": {
         "httpUrl": "https://api.dapperglobal.com/mcp"
       }
     }
   }

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4. 4

   Restart and connect

   Restart the CLI and type /mcp. Dapper's tools appear, and the first call opens the browser for the Dapper login.

   /mcp

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5. 5

   Ask something

   Try: “Find open ANEEL public consultations about electricity distribution.”

gemini mcp add --transport http dapper https://api.dapperglobal.com/mcp

These clients move their settings around often. Steps verified in September 2026 — if a menu has moved, the endpoint at the top of this page has not.