One tool to rule them all? Or, even better, the super stack. Stacking the right set of tools that yield something greater than the parts. For engineering, I use MATLAB, MATLAB Copilot for syntax help, Visual Studio Code with the MATLAB extension installed, and Claude Code running in Visual Studio Code, connected to MATLAB via MCP.
Here’s how I feel rn.
I really feel like I can engineer anything with this setup, helping me build engineered systems. I have tried new toolboxes, built deep learning projects, and improved my MATLAB coding skills by running AI code reviews.
“Using MATLAB + Claude Code went from ‘vibe coding’ to ‘vibration engineering’ — I was no longer just using AI — I learned from it, got pointed in the right direction, and dug in.
Hans Scharler
Here is what you need:
- MATLAB: https://matlab.mathworks.com
- Visual Studio Code: https://code.visualstudio.com/
- Claude Code: https://www.claude.com/product/claude-code
- MATLAB MCP Core Server for Claude Code: https://github.com/matlab/matlab-mcp-core-server
- MATLAB Extension for Visual Studio Code: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=MathWorks.language-matlab
To build your own super stack, open a new MATLAB project in Visual Studio Code with the MATLAB and the Claude Code extensions enabled. From a terminal in VS Code, run Claude Code. Claude Code will interact with Visual Studio Code via these extensions. In Claude Code, enable the MATLAB MCP Core Server. This will give you five MCP tools to interact with MATLAB. Claude Code will be able to check code, evaluate code, run files, run test files, and detect your local MATLAB’s toolboxes.
In my vibration project, my team and I created a few files. It has been a minute since I used them, but with Claude Code, I can just get going. It is going to read what I have, learn from he documentation, and do whatever I am looking to do.
Use the vibration model to generate three weeks of vibration data, then use the analyze vibration function to detect any anomiliesWhat’s great about this workflow is that Claude Code is “not making up” a solution; it is leveraging the models that I have built plus constrained in MATLAB, bringing some engineering rigor to the chat. Claude Code is taking advantage of the Signal Processing Toolbox and how it works, rather than trying to figure out signal processing with some scratch code.
One extra benefit of this engineering stack is that I find myself exploring more, trying out other features of MATLAB that I haven’t used before. I feel way more confident trying something new and then learning how it works. I keep expanding what I know and onboarding into new things, learning, and gaining more experience rather than settling for a static picture. Dynamic.
WHat are your pro tips?