In ChatGPT, the HilltopAds MCP server is added as a custom connector. Adding custom MCP connectors requires ChatGPT's Developer mode, which is available on paid plans and must be turned on first.
How to connect in ChatGPT?
Turn on Developer mode. Open Settings → Security and login, find the Developer mode section and switch it on. This is what lets ChatGPT add custom connectors such as the HilltopAds MCP; it is marked ELEVATED RISK because such connectors can modify data, which is exactly what the write operations do.
Step 1 — enable Developer mode under Settings → Security and login.
2. Open the Plugins panel and click the + button to add a new connector.
Step 2 — Plugins panel, the + button.
3. Fill in the New Plugin form:
Name — for example,
HilltopAds MCPConnection — keep Server URL and paste
https://mcp.hilltopads.com/mcpAuthentication — select OAuth
Tick I understand and want to continue, then click Create
Step 3 — the New Plugin form with the server URL and OAuth authentication.
4. On the Add HilltopAds MCP to ChatGPT screen, click Sign in with HilltopAds MCP.
Step 4 — Sign in with HilltopAds MCP.
5. You are taken to the HilltopAds MCP Authorization page. Paste the API key from step 2 and click Authorize. No email or password is needed.
Step 5 — paste your API key on the HilltopAds authorization page and click Authorize.
6. ChatGPT shows the connector as connected. You are ready to go.
Step 6 — the connector is connected and its details are visible.
Using it in ChatGPT
Just ask in plain language. ChatGPT decides on its own which HilltopAds tool to call. For example, “What operations are available to me in HilltopAds MCP” or “List my campaigns and their ads.”
The assistant lists the operations available under your grant.
“List my campaigns and their ads” — the assistant summarizes your inventory.
You can also point the request at the connector explicitly by attaching it and typing a request such as “Show me my statistics for the last month by geo.”
Attaching the HilltopAds MCP connector to a request.
The result: advertiser statistics grouped by GEO.
Creating a campaign in ChatGPT
The connector can also create a campaign for you. Tell the assistant what you want; it gathers the required details, shows you exactly what it will send, and asks for your approval before writing anything. In this example it also creates the campaign inactive so you can review it first — its own choice, not a rule, so state it explicitly if you need it.
Ask to create a campaign, for example “I want to create a campaign.” The assistant lists the details it needs — campaign name, format, pricing model, landing URL, traffic channel(s) and bid — and offers a single line you can fill in.
Step 1 — the assistant lists the required details and a one-line format.
2. If you are unsure about a value, ask. For example, “What channel names are available for pops according to documentation?” — the assistant answers from the HilltopAds documentation.
Step 2 — asking which values are valid; the answer comes from the documentation.
3. Send the campaign details. The assistant restates the setup and asks for approval: Allow ChatGPT to use HilltopAds MCP? Click See details to inspect the exact request first.
Step 3 — the write approval card. Use See details to inspect the request.
4. The details view shows the write request field by field — format, type, name, URL, channels, bid and whether it is active. Click Allow to proceed.
Step 4 — the exact request, field by field, before you allow it.
5. The assistant confirms the campaign was created and returns its ID. Here it creates it inactive (its own sensible choice), so nothing spends until you start it.
Step 5 — created successfully, with the new campaign ID; it stays inactive.
6. The new campaign is now in your HilltopAds account, ready to review, fund and start.
Step 6 — the campaign is in your HilltopAds account (traffic off until you start it).