ChatGPT integration fails with MCP protocol version / clientCapabilities error

Hello!

I’m currently unable to use the awork MCP integration from ChatGPT.

The connection had been working normally for approximately one month before this issue started yesterday, August 13, 2026. Since then, the connection has consistently failed before any actual awork API request is executed.

The exact error returned is:

The reserved per-request metadata key '_meta/io.modelcontextprotocol/clientCapabilities' is not valid with protocol version '2025-11-25'.

The error is reproducible even with a minimal MCP call and is therefore not tied to a specific awork endpoint or resource such as tasks or time entries.

I have tested the following:

  • Disconnecting and reconnecting the awork integration in ChatGPT
  • Re-authenticating the connection
  • Testing from a completely new ChatGPT conversation

The same error occurs in all cases.

The connection uses the standard awork MCP endpoint:

https://api.awork.com/api/v1/mcp

awork Support informed me that the current implementation uses ModelContextProtocol 2.1.0.

The error indicates that the request contains the per-request metadata key io.modelcontextprotocol/clientCapabilities, while the connection is being handled as MCP protocol version 2025-11-25.

Update: connecting with Codex does not seem to return any issues.

Hi @Kjetil_Ringen thanks for bringing this up. Apparently ChatGPT seems to send a mismatch of MCP version information which the latest version of our server rejects. We’re working on a fix to remain compatible, which should be available soon.

I have deactivated and reconnected to the MCP today. It seems that everything is in order :blush: