← Distributed Robotics Group

August 6, 2026

DRG#05 Robot Kit HTTP/MCP Server - Workshop Planning and API Design

HTTP/MCP Server implementation for PiCar Freenove robot kitTwo-tier API architecture (high-level autonomous agent vs. low-level tethered control)Low-level telemetry and verbose monitoring capabilitiesWorkshop logistics and participant recruitment for symposiumRegistration and onboarding infrastructure setup

Participants: anurajenp, _vgr, shreeram8484, drevius., rafa_0x

The DRG group met to discuss development of an HTTP/MCP Server for the PiCar Freenove robot kit as part of a larger symposium workshop. Key technical discussion centered on API architecture, with _vgr proposing a two-tier system that supports both high-level autonomous agent interactions and low-level tethered drone control with verbose telemetry. The group confirmed interest from multiple participants including drevius., who volunteered to help with workshop testing.

Parallel to technical development, the team worked through workshop logistics and infrastructure. They initially considered email-based registration but encountered spam filter issues, ultimately settling on a Google Form as the simpler solution. rafa_0x forgot to record the August 11 follow-up meeting but confirmed key project links and documentation. The group also planned to migrate onboarding materials to the yakrobot website to improve participant preparation.

  • _vgr advocated for a dual-mode API design supporting both autonomous agent behavior and direct controller tethering, with comprehensive low-level telemetry access.
  • drevius. expressed interest in purchasing the kit and volunteered to participate in workshop dry-runs while on vacation through August 30.
  • The group decided to use a Google Form for participant registration rather than email-based systems to avoid spam filter complications.
  • Hardware assembly requires separate procurement of Raspberry Pi and batteries beyond the robot kit itself.
  • The project is being integrated into the Protocol Symposium 2026 workshop program under 'Robots as Protocol Citizens' theme.
Links discussed
View discussion in Discord →

Session Recording Summary · 43m 43s · Full notes ↗

Reading: Not clearly identified in the discussion. This session was a live demo and working discussion rather than a text-based reading group meeting. The central artifact was Anuraj R's "Agrobotkit" repository (hosted under the group's robotics GitHub org) and the associated robot gateway / MCP server.

Anuraj R gave a live demonstration of a small (~$80) four-wheeled robot kit he assembled and programmed, showing how he ported its stock software to a custom FastAPI HTTP server and connected it to the group's robot gateway/MCP server so that a browser-based Claude agent could teleoperate it. The discussion covered the technical architecture (adapters, plugins, gateway, tunneling), how the build was done with AI coding agents, ideas for future features, and a recurring open problem of how to *verify* that a robot actually performed a task. The group also began planning a hands-on workshop where participants would assemble and register robots on the marketplace.

Questions & Disagreements: - **Verification of work (Spencer Norwick, raised repeatedly):** How can a robot prove it actually did a task, especially without reliable video/undeniable confirmation? Spencer floated a "proof of work" notion — using expended power/compute/motor rotation as evidence, and having the operator put something at stake so tasks can't be spoofed. Anuraj R agreed this comes up frequently and said he has

Participants: Anuraj R, Spencer Norwick U-0700, Maier, rafa (UTC+1), shreeram, Giovanni Merlino, christopher boette | utc-4