# AI is Collapsing CAD Discover how AI is breaking down the silos between electrical, mechanical, and firmware engineering. Learn how Flux unifies hardware design in one conversation. Written by [Matthias Wagner](https://www.flux.ai/natarius) Published Sep 2026 - 2 min read ![AI is Collapsing CAD](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/ai-is-collapsing-cad/main.webp) ## Hardware was split up because people were split up AI is collapsing the walls between engineering disciplines that split CAD apart in the first place. That changes more than how hardware gets built and who gets to build it. Electrical engineers got layout tools. Mechanical engineers got CAD. Firmware engineers got IDEs. The tools were separated because the expertise was. AI doesn’t have that constraint. An agent can reason like an electrical engineer, then a mechanical engineer, then a firmware engineer, all in one conversation. Once the expertise isn’t locked inside separate people, there’s no reason for it to live in separate tools. > “Once the expertise isn’t locked inside separate people, there’s no reason for it to live in separate tools.” > > — Matthias Wagner, Co-founder ## Our customers got there first Our customers are designing a device: a sensor that mounts to a bike frame or a controller that has to fit inside a wall box. And many of them are already trying to force it together on their own, bouncing between ChatGPT, Claude, and Codex for the circuit, the enclosure, and the firmware, copying and pasting between tools that have no idea the others exist. They’re not waiting for the industry to catch up. ## The whole device, in one place Enclosure and mechanical design now live inside Flux, right alongside your schematic, layout, and firmware. Describe the enclosure in chat, and the agent designs it around your actual hardware, so the connectors line up and the mounting holes land where they should. Preview it in 3D, export it to print, or get live quotes from JLC3DP and PCBWay without leaving the session. One agent. One chat. The whole device. It’s early, and there’s a lot still coming, including thermal analysis and mechanical stress testing. But the direction is set. [Start building your prototype in Flux →](https://www.flux.ai/p) ## You can just build things now CAD serves tens of millions. PCB tools, a few hundred thousand. But the largest group has always been the people trying to build hardware anyway, and most of them stall before they ever hold a prototype. Not for lack of ideas. Because every tool expected them to already be an expert across domains. We’re building for them. That’s why we’re not building a better PCB tool anymore. We’re building the AI hardware engineer. If you’ve ever had an idea for a device, you no longer need three specialties to build it. You need one conversation. Let’s start building Build your big idea together with Flux. All you need to do is describe what you want to make, or what problem you want to solve. Flux will work with you to make it a reality. ![Close-up photo of a PCB made with Flux, with an ESP32 module, buttons, and a microSD slot.](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/miscellaneous/sidebar-cta-pcb.webp) [Try it Free](https://www.flux.ai/signup) ## Related Content [ ![A 3D-printed custom hardware enclosure generated by Flux around a printed circuit board](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/hardware-enclosure-design/main.webp) ### Custom Hardware Enclosures by Flux: From PCB to Product in Hand 5 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/hardware-enclosure-design)[ ![The Flux logo at the center of a ring of AI and productivity tool logos, including OpenAI, Claude, VS Code, Notion and Google Drive](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/summer-2026-updates/main.webp) ### Seamless collaboration between you, Flux, and other AI agents 2 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/summer-2026-updates-flux-mcp-server-and-chat-mode)[ ![Design hardware in the fast lane with Flux's new steerable agent](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/new-steerable-hardware-agent/main.webp) ### Design hardware in the fast lane with Flux's new steerable agent 3 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/new-steerable-hardware-agent)[ ![High-Speed PCB Design: Layout Rules, Signal Integrity, and Routing Best Practices](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/high-speed-pcb-design/main.webp) ### High-Speed PCB Design: Layout Rules, Signal Integrity, and Routing Best Practices 11 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/high-speed-pcb-design-layout-rules)[ ![Spring 2026 Updates: Faster AI, Better Layouts, Smarter Sourcing](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/spring-2026-updates/main.webp) ### Spring 2026 Updates: Faster AI, Better Layouts, Smarter Sourcing 4 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/spring-2026-updates-faster-ai-better-layouts-smarter-sourcing)[ ![We raised $37M to take the hard out of hardware](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/blogs/fundraise-announcement/main.webp) ### We raised $37M to take the hard out of hardware 3 Min Read](https://www.flux.ai/p/blog/we-raised-37m-to-take-the-hard-out-of-hardware) See All (6) ## Let’s start building. Let’s build your idea together. All you need to do is describe what you want to make, or what problem you want to solve. Flux will work with you to make it a reality. [Try it Free](https://www.flux.ai/signup) ![Close-up of a Flux-designed printed circuit board](https://www.flux.ai/p/assets/homepage-v2/mission-visual.webp)