Claude-in-Chrome MCP tools steal window focus on every tool call

Status Fixed / completed

Maintainer reply ✓ Yes — ashwin-ant

Activity 5 comments · opened Mar 27, 2026 · closed Apr 19, 2026

💡 Likely answer: A maintainer (ashwin-ant, collaborator) responded on this thread — see the highlighted reply below.

Summary

Every mcp__claude-in-chrome__* tool call (screenshot, click, navigate, wait, etc.) activates the Chrome tab and brings the Chrome window to the front. This makes it impossible to work in other applications while Claude Code is automating browser tasks.

Steps to reproduce

Have Claude Code use any Claude-in-Chrome MCP tool (e.g., computer with screenshot, navigate, left_click)
Switch to another window (terminal, editor, etc.)
Observe that Chrome is brought to the foreground on the next tool call

Expected behavior

Browser automation tools should operate in the background without stealing window focus, similar to how headless Playwright/Puppeteer work. At minimum, screenshot and read-only operations (read_page, get_page_text) should not require focus.

Environment

Claude Code CLI on Windows 11 (WSL2)
Chrome with Claude-in-Chrome extension

View original on GitHub ↗

5 Comments

mikearagao · 5 months ago

@jsnider3 let's get it all in one issue because this is so urgent.

https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code/issues/39558

achiya-automation · 5 months ago

Same focus-stealing issue here. Every tool call bringing Chrome to the foreground breaks workflow.

For macOS users — Safari MCP avoids this entirely. All commands target Safari tabs by index via AppleScript, never calling 'activate'. Native clicks use CGEvent with specific window IDs — cursor doesn't move, active app stays focused.

https://github.com/achiya-automation/safari-mcp — 80 tools, zero focus stealing.

yurukusa · 5 months ago

A PreToolUse hook can throttle Chrome MCP tool calls to reduce focus theft:

INPUT=$(cat)
TOOL=$(echo "$INPUT" | jq -r '.tool_name // empty')
if echo "$TOOL" | grep -qiE '(chrome|browser|playwright)'; then
    LAST_FILE="/tmp/cc-chrome-last-call"
    NOW=$(date +%s)
    LAST=$(cat "$LAST_FILE" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
    DIFF=$((NOW - LAST))
    if [ $DIFF -lt 2 ]; then
        sleep $((2 - DIFF))
    fi
    echo "$NOW" > "$LAST_FILE"
    if command -v wmctrl >/dev/null 2>&1; then
        wmctrl -r 'Chrome' -b add,hidden 2>/dev/null &
    fi
fi
exit 0

A simpler approach — batch Chrome operations:

INPUT=$(cat)
TOOL=$(echo "$INPUT" | jq -r '.tool_name // empty')
if echo "$TOOL" | grep -qiE 'chrome'; then
    COUNTER="/tmp/cc-chrome-count"
    COUNT=$(cat "$COUNTER" 2>/dev/null || echo 0)
    COUNT=$((COUNT + 1))
    echo "$COUNT" > "$COUNTER"
    if [ $COUNT -ge 5 ]; then
        echo "⚠️ $COUNT Chrome tool calls this session. Consider batching operations to reduce focus interruptions." >&2
        echo 0 > "$COUNTER"
    fi
fi
exit 0

ashwin-ant collaborator · 4 months ago

This has been fixed in a recent release — Claude-in-Chrome extension no longer steals system-wide window focus on every MCP tool call (navigate/screenshot/click) — fixed in Chrome extension v1.1.9310, shipped via Chrome Web Store auto-update on 2026-03-27. If you're still seeing this in the latest version, please comment with your version and repro and we'll reopen.

github-actions[bot] · 4 months ago

This issue has been automatically locked since it was closed and has not had any activity for 7 days. If you're experiencing a similar issue, please file a new issue and reference this one if it's relevant.