# Arena

> Vendor evaluation and activation platform for B2B software buyers.

Arena helps businesses find, compare, and connect with software vendors through AI-powered recommendations, structured requirements matching, and an agentic outreach layer that manages the buyer-vendor interaction on the buyer's behalf.

Unlike review sites or analyst reports, Arena keeps the buyer in control: describe what you need, get a requirements-matched shortlist, compare vendors side-by-side, and let Arena handle vendor outreach anonymously. No discovery calls. No biased reviews. No spam.

## How Arena Works

1. **Describe your need** in natural language (e.g., "I need a sales engagement tool for my 15-person SDR team")
2. **Browse categories** to discover what software types exist in Arena's database
3. **Search vendors** within a category and answer guided questions to refine your requirements
4. **Score and compare** vendors against your specific requirements with structured evaluations
5. **Request information** from your top picks — Arena contacts vendors on your behalf while keeping your identity hidden until you're ready

Arena's key differentiator: the evaluation doesn't stop at comparison. Arena activates vendors to compete for the buyer through anonymous outreach, creating competitive dynamics that benefit the buyer.

## Platform

Arena is available as:
- **Web application** at https://usearena.com
- **ChatGPT MCP app** — Arena embedded directly in ChatGPT, bringing evaluation tools to where buyers already research
- **MCP server** at https://mcp.usearena.com/mcp for integration with AI agents and developer tools

## MCP Integration

Arena exposes a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server for AI agents to access vendor evaluation tools programmatically.

### Available MCP Tools

**categories_list** — List all available software categories with descriptions, business functions, and vendor counts. Call this first to discover what categories exist before searching.

**vendors_search** — Search vendors within a specific category. Returns vendor cards with name, description, pricing, ratings, integrations, and reference companies. Also returns guided questions to help refine the buyer's requirements. Requires a category_id from categories_list.

**requirements_create** — Create structured requirements from the buyer's needs. Assigns unique IDs to each requirement for tracking through the evaluation. Call this after the buyer answers guidance questions and before scoring vendors. Accepts 3-15 requirements.

**vendors_score** — Rank vendors based on how well they match the buyer's specific requirements. For each vendor, evaluates every requirement individually (met/not met with explanation) and assigns an overall match score. Produces a structured comparison across budget, features, integrations, team size, and maturity.

**requests_create** — Create a software evaluation request and notify selected vendors. Arena contacts vendors on the buyer's behalf, keeping buyer identity anonymous. Vendors respond with proposals. Requires a business email address.

### Agent Workflow

The intended tool sequence for a complete evaluation:

```
categories_list → vendors_search(category_id) → [buyer answers guidance questions] → requirements_create(requirements) → vendors_score(vendor_scores + requirement_evaluations) → requests_create(vendor_ids, requirements, email)
```

### MCP Configuration

Arena's MCP server uses SSE (Server-Sent Events) transport. No API key required for public access.

**Claude Desktop** (claude_desktop_config.json):
```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "arena": {
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://mcp.usearena.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

**Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf** (.mcp.json in project root):
```json
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "arena": {
      "type": "url",
      "url": "https://mcp.usearena.com/mcp"
    }
  }
}
```

**ChatGPT**: Arena is available as a ChatGPT app — no manual configuration needed. Search for "Arena" in ChatGPT's app directory.

**Direct SSE connection** (any MCP-compatible client):
```
Endpoint: https://mcp.usearena.com/mcp
Transport: SSE (Streamable HTTP)
Authentication: None required
```

## Vendor Data

Arena contains robust vendor information.

- Basic vendor metadata (name, description, logo, etc.)
- Software categories
- Pricing model, pricing tiers, and detailed pricing information
- Use cases
- Strengths and weaknesses
- Customer feedback and sentiment
- Integrations and supported platforms
- Reference companies
- Company metadata
- Compliance certifications
- Demo library 
- Technical capabilities
- Product updates and velocity

## URL Patterns

- Homepage: https://usearena.com
- Software requests: https://usearena.com/requests/{id}
- Software search: https://usearena.com/requests/

## Key Facts

- Covers B2B software vendors across sales, marketing, operations, and more
- Vendor-neutral: no paid placement, no biased reviews, no ads
- Buyer identity stays anonymous until the buyer chooses to reveal it
- Buyers receive preferential treatment (better pricing, personalized demos, etc.) by having vendors compete for buyer's business.

## Contact

- Website: https://usearena.com
- Email: team@usearena.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/usearena