An agent is only as powerful as the tools it can reach, but as we move from simple prototypes to production systems, "MCP Sprawl" becomes a critical bottleneck. Directly connecting agents to a dozen disparate servers is fragile, insecure, and unmanageable at scale.

In this session, we explore the MCP Gateway pattern. A centralized layer that bridges the gap between non-deterministic LLMs and mission-critical systems. We will dive into the first principles of gateway architecture, from curated tool composition to "On-Behalf-Of" authentication. You’ll learn how to avoid common pitfalls like namespace collisions and over-privileged service accounts. Most importantly, we’ll demonstrate how to evaluate tool selections using relevant scenarios to ensure your agents remain reliable, secure, and vendor-agnostic.