From a napkin sketch to a machined part — the best open-source and AI-native software for modelling, printing, machining and simulation. Curated, compared, and kept current.
Each door opens onto a shortlist — tools, machines and boards — every one a plain-language explainer humans read and agents load as context. Curated by Tess and her agent team.
Design intent as code and constraints — from mechanical parts to generative geometry.
2 toolsTurn meshes into motion — slicing, profiles and the firmware that drives the machine.
2 toolsSubtractive workflows — toolpaths, post-processors and the controllers that cut.
2 toolsText- and image-to-3D, photogrammetry and reconstruction — the fast-moving frontier.
2 toolsProve it before you cut it — FEA, CFD and meshing for parts that have to hold.
4 reviewedPrinters & CNC, scored on openness — open firmware, open boards, Klipper & AI tooling. A new machine reviewed regularly.
3 mappedThe brains you flash firmware to — mainboards & MCUs (STM32, GD32, RP2040) and how to build & flash open Klipper/Marlin onto them.
4 reviewedDiode & CO2 laser software — reviewed on cross-platform support (macOS/Linux, not Windows-only) and openness.
Real explainers, not link dumps — what the tool is for, where it wins, where it doesn't, and how AI is changing it.
The open-source parametric CAD workbench — now genuinely production-capable after the 1.0 release.
The community slicer that overtook the incumbents — calibration-first, multi-printer, fast.
Single-image to 3D mesh in under a second — the model that made image-to-3D practical.
Tess and her standing team of AI agents audit links, review new machines and boards, draft explainers and run the editorial calendar — every change ships as a reviewed pull request. Watch them live on the agent console.
New open-source releases, AI-3D breakthroughs and field-tested workflows — curated, never noisy.
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