Dylan Field Says MCP Falls Short of Perfection

Background on MCP and Figma’s Vision

When Figma introduced the Multi‑Component Protocol (MCP), the goal was clear: enable seamless exchange of design assets across tools while keeping the creator in control. The protocol promised a common language that could bridge the gap between competing platforms.

During a recent interview, Dylan Field, co founder of Figma, shared his candid assessment of MCP. He emphasized that while the protocol marks a step forward, it is not a flawless solution for every workflow.

Why MCP Is Not Considered Perfect

Field highlighted three core reasons for his reservation.

1. Incomplete Coverage of Design Edge Cases

Design systems often contain intricate interactions, nested components, and conditional logic. MCP currently handles basic component structures well, but it struggles with advanced scenarios such as dynamic theming or context‑aware variants. As Field noted, "We see developers needing to extend the protocol for those rare but critical cases."

2. Balancing Openness with Data Privacy

Figma has publicly stated that it plans to support as many standards as possible without exposing all of its data. This stance reflects a broader industry tension between interoperability and proprietary advantage. Field explained that MCP was designed to share only the information necessary for rendering, leaving more sensitive metadata within Figma’s ecosystem.

3. Evolving Ecosystem Requirements

The design tool landscape changes rapidly. New file formats, collaboration features, and AI‑driven assistants appear each year. MCP must adapt, and Field warned that a protocol that is static will quickly become outdated.

Figma’s Approach to Standards

Rather than committing to a single protocol, Figma adopts a flexible strategy. The company aims to implement multiple standards where they make sense, while maintaining the ability to evolve its own internal APIs.

Support for open formats such as SVG and JSON remains a priority.
Figma will contribute to community‑driven specifications when alignment with its product roadmap is clear.
Proprietary features that give designers a competitive edge will stay within the platform, protected by robust security measures.

For more detail on Figma’s official stance, see the Figma blog.

Industry Reactions and External Perspectives

Experts from the standards community have weighed in on MCP’s potential. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) emphasizes that any protocol intended for broad adoption should undergo rigorous testing and public review. Their guidelines can be found on the W3C standards page.

Tech journalists have also covered Figma’s data strategy. A recent piece in TechCrunch highlighted the company’s careful balance between openness and protecting user data.

What This Means for Designers and Developers

For practitioners, the key takeaway is to treat MCP as a useful but not exhaustive tool. Here are practical steps to integrate MCP while mitigating its limitations:

Identify which components in your library are simple enough for MCP export.
Maintain a parallel documentation set for complex interactions that MCP cannot capture.
Monitor updates from Figma and the MCP working group to stay informed about new capabilities.
Consider fallback formats like SVG for assets that require broader compatibility.

By following this approach, teams can benefit from the protocol’s strengths without being caught off guard by its gaps.

Future Outlook for MCP

Field expressed optimism that MCP will evolve through community contributions and iterative releases. The protocol’s open‑source repository invites developers to propose extensions, submit bug reports, and add test cases.

Figma plans to host regular workshops where designers can share real‑world use cases. These sessions aim to surface the edge cases that currently limit MCP’s completeness.

In summary, while MCP is not a perfect protocol, it represents a meaningful step toward a more interoperable design ecosystem. Its ongoing development will likely shape how design tools collaborate in the years ahead.