Open-sourcing our text-to-CAD app
Hey HN! I'm Zach from Adam (https://adam.new/). We’re building an AI co-pilot for mechanical CAD software. As part of our broader research, we built a browser-based Text-to-CAD app (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44182206) and are now open sourcing it. This is a React SPA with a Supabase backend. What it does: * Generates parametric 3D models from natural language descriptions, with support for both text prompts and image references * Outputs OpenSCAD code with automatically extracted parameters that surface as interactive sliders for instant dimension…
In plain words
Adam's Text-to-CAD app is a browser-based tool that generates 3D parametric models from natural language descriptions or images. It produces OpenSCAD code with extracted parameters that appear as interactive sliders for quick dimension adjustments, and exports to STL or SCAD formats. Built as a React application with Supabase backend, it runs entirely in the browser using WebAssembly-compiled OpenSCAD and Three.js visualization. The tool is designed for engineers and designers who want to create CAD models through text prompts rather than traditional CAD interfaces.
written from the facts on this page · September 2026
From the sources
In the maker’s words, at launch
Hey HN! I'm Zach from Adam (https://adam.new/). We’re building an AI co-pilot for mechanical CAD software. As part of our broader research, we built a browser-based Text-to-CAD app (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44182206) and are now open sourcing it. This is a React SPA with a Supabase backend. What it does: * Generates parametric 3D models from natural language descriptions, with support for both text prompts and image references * Outputs OpenSCAD code with automatically extracted parameters that surface as interactive sliders for instant dimension tweaking * Exports as .STL or .SCAD Under the hood: * Separate agents for conversation and code generation; simple parameter tweaks bypass AI entirely using deterministic regex-based updates * Runs fully in-browser by compiling OpenSCAD to WebAssembly and integrating Three.js with React Three Fiber for 3D rendering * Supports BOSL, BOSL2, MCAD libraries and custom font support (Geist) for text in models We’ve seen many developers trying to replicate this kind of functionality, so we’re releasing this to give the community a solid foundation to build on. Future improvements: * Expand geometry support - Move beyond CSG primitives to support curved surfaces, fillets, lofts, and constraint-driven modeling through CadQuery/Build123D * Better spatial context - UI for face/edge selection and viewport image integration to give LLMs spatial understanding * Enhanced capabilities - RAG on documentation and integration with more OpenSCAD libraries for features like proper threading You can clone the repo and run it locally! Contributions are welcome, and we’ll keep merging PRs as they come in.
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Years ago I stumbled across a basic version of this concept and it stuck with me. I knew if I was ever going to take on such a project, it would need to be flawless, but without coding experience it was just another idea that would never happen. By the end of 2024, as AI coding tools exploded everywhere, I finally had a way to make it real. I started from zero knowledge and spent months collaborating with AI agents as a learning experience. Every pixel and every function went through me. The AI translated what I asked for into code, but every decision was human. I didn't use existing OS…
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