How to Supercharge Your CAD Workflow with an AI Agent (Adam)

Introduction

If you've ever wished your CAD software could read your mind—or at least handle the tedious cleanup tasks—you're not alone. Traditional prompt-to-3D tools are fun for a quick demo, but serious mechanical engineers need something that works inside their existing environment, with full visibility and control over the feature tree. That's exactly what the Adam AI harness was built for. Co-founded by Zach, Adam integrates directly with Autodesk Fusion and PTC Onshape (currently in beta) to act as an intelligent agent that reads your parts, understands your design intent, and edits the feature tree for you—agentically. This guide walks you through setting up Adam and using it to transform your CAD workflow step by step.

What You Need

• A valid subscription to Autodesk Fusion or PTC Onshape (free tiers work for testing)
• An internet connection (Adam's AI runs in the cloud)
• A web browser for installation (app store links provided)
• Basic familiarity with your CAD software's environment
• A 3D model you're comfortable experimenting with

Step 1: Install the Adam Harness

Adam lives as an add‑in inside your CAD tool. Installation is straightforward:

1. For Autodesk Fusion: Go to fusion.adam.new/install and follow the prompts. This will install the Adam add‑in directly into your Fusion toolbar.
2. For PTC Onshape: Navigate to the Onshape App Store at this link (the full URL is provided in the install page). Click "Install" and authorize Adam to access your documents.
3. After installation, restart your CAD software. You'll see a new "Adam" menu or icon in the toolbar.

Step 2: Launch Adam and Connect to a Model

1. Open the CAD model you want to work on. It can be a brand new part or an existing assembly.
2. Click the Adam icon to launch the agent. A side panel will appear, showing the current state of your feature tree.
3. Adam reads your entire model, including all features, sketches, and parameters. It builds an internal understanding of your design intent.
4. You'll see a confirmation that Adam is ready to accept commands. The agent is now connected and aware of your model's history.

Step 3: Give Your First Command

Adam accepts natural language commands. Here are some examples that real users have reported:

• "Merge redundant features and clean up my tree" – Adam will identify duplicate or overlapping features and combine them, then remove any unnecessary operations.
• "Rename every feature so the tree is actually readable" – It will rename features like "Extrude1" to meaningful names such as "Base Mount Plate" or "Hole Pattern."
• "Round all internal edges with a 2mm fillet" – A batch operation that applies fillets intelligently only to interior edges.
• "Parametrize my model" – Adam will extract key dimensions and expose them as editable parameters, making your model much more flexible.
• "Generate CAD from scratch" – Describe a part (e.g., "a bracket with four holes and a 45° flange") and Adam will create the full feature tree for you.

Simply type your request in Adam's panel. The agent will analyze the command, execute the changes agentically (meaning it makes decisions along the way), and show you a preview of what it plans to do. You can approve or modify before finalizing.

Step 4: Review and Refine

After Adam runs a command, it provides a detailed report:

• A list of every feature that was added, removed, or modified
• The reasoning behind each change (e.g., "Fillet applied to edge 12 because it connects two faces with a concave angle")
• A before/after comparison of the feature tree
• An option to undo everything if you're not satisfied

You can then continue the conversation: ask for adjustments, request a different approach, or move on to another task. Adam remembers the context of your current session.

Step 5: Explore Advanced Capabilities

One of Adam's standout features is its model‑agnostic AI engine. It doesn't rely solely on a single large language model. Instead, it runs its own internal CAD benchmark across frontier models, picking whichever model is currently best suited for each task type. This means you automatically benefit from the latest improvements in spatial reasoning—especially noticeable with recent models like GPT‑5.5 and Opus 4.7. The harness uses FeatureScript on Onshape and Python in Fusion to interact natively with the CAD geometry.

Adam also integrates with open‑source tools: the earlier text‑to‑CAD code (CADAM) is available on GitHub for developers who want to explore or extend the functionality.

Tips for Getting the Most Out of Adam

• Start with cleanup tasks. If you're new to AI in CAD, begin by asking Adam to "clean up and rename all features"—it's a low‑risk way to see the agent's reasoning and build trust.
• Use explicit dimensions when possible. While Adam can infer dimensions, being specific (e.g., "fillet all edges with a radius of 1.5mm") yields more predictable results.
• Compare with the Anthropic Autodesk connector. The recent connector from Anthropic validates this direction, but Adam is different: it's model‑agnostic and lives natively inside your CAD apps. Experiment with both to see which fits your workflow.
• Iterate in small steps. Instead of one giant command, break your request into smaller parts. Let Adam do a few operations, review, then ask for more.
• Keep your feature tree clean. The cleaner your starting tree, the better Adam can understand it. Use the cleanup command as a first step on messy imported models.
• Provide feedback. The team behind Adam is actively building integrations across all major CAD programs. If something doesn't work as expected, report it—they're using community feedback to improve the benchmark and agent behavior.

Conclusion

Adam represents a new paradigm in CAD: an AI agent that works with you inside your existing tool, giving you full control over the feature tree while automating the drudgery. Whether you're cleaning up imported geometry, parametrizing a legacy model, or generating parts from scratch, the harness adapts to your needs. As AI spatial reasoning continues to leap forward, tools like Adam will only become more powerful. So install it, try out a few commands, and see how much faster your CAD workflow can be.