[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":121,"prefetchLinks":122},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article_build-custom-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-you-dont-have-to-start-with-code_draftsight":3,"_apollo:default":119,"_apollo:identified":120},{"posts":4},{"nodes":5,"__typename":118},[6],{"id":7,"slug":8,"title":9,"uri":10,"excerpt":11,"locale":12,"featuredImage":15,"tableOfContents":24,"content":25,"date":26,"authorJobTitle":27,"author":28,"masterings":38,"globalTags":52,"products":79,"disciplines":90,"seo":108,"__typename":117},"cG9zdDo3MTg1NQ==","build-custom-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-you-dont-have-to-start-with-code","Build Custom DraftSight Add-Ins With AI: You Don’t Have to Start With Code","\u002Fproducts\u002Fdraftsight\u002Fbuild-custom-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-you-dont-have-to-start-with-code","\u003Cp>In this on-demand webinar, DraftSight Technical Sales Manager Brian Vanasse shows how he used AI with the DraftSight API. He covers a range of applications, including a docked AI chat palette and a redesigned G-code workflow, to turn his ideas into functional add-ins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n",{"locale":13,"__typename":14},"en_US","Locale",{"node":16,"__typename":23},{"large":17,"__typename":18,"medium_large":19,"thumbnail":20,"srcSet":21,"sizes":22},"https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1024x576.png","MediaItem","https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-768x432.png","https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-150x150.png","https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-300x169.png 300w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-768x432.png 768w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai.png 1672w","(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px","NodeWithFeaturedImageToMediaItemConnectionEdge",[],"\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What would you build for DraftSight if writing the code were no longer the first hurdle?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe your team runs a drawing check repeatedly. Or you have a repetitive process involving hundreds of files. Or you wish a tool existed for a workflow unique to your company. Or perhaps there is information trapped in one system that you would rather bring directly into your CAD workflow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For years, APIs have helped tackle problems like these. The challenge was getting from an idea to working software. You needed to understand the API, write and compile code, and troubleshoot errors before you had something that worked. Without programming experience or access to a developer, a useful idea could stop there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI is beginning to change that part of the equation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the on-demand webinar \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fyoutu.be\u002FK4He0N00sGM\">\u003Cstrong>Build Custom DraftSight Add-Ins with AI\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fa>, DraftSight Technical Sales Manager Brian Vanasse explores what happens when someone who understands DraftSight and the workflow they want to improve uses AI to help navigate the software development process.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Brian is not a professional software developer. He knows DraftSight. He understands 2D CAD. Most importantly, he knows what he wants the software to do. His expertise remains central to every example in the webinar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cfigure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\u003Cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1024x576.png.webp\" alt=\"build DraftSight Add-ins with AI\" class=\"wp-image-71856\" srcset=\"https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1024x576.png.webp 1024w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-300x169.png.webp 300w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-768x432.png.webp 768w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-1536x864.png.webp 1536w, https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2026\u002F10\u002Fbuild-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai.png.webp 1672w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \u002F>\u003C\u002Ffigure>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>The API Is the Doorway\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To understand where AI fits, it helps to understand what makes these customizations possible: the DraftSight API.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An application programming interface, or API, provides a structured way for software to interact with other software. In DraftSight, the API provides capabilities developers can use to automate tasks, create custom functionality, and connect DraftSight to other applications and business systems.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Consider a repetitive CAD task. Perhaps hundreds of drawings need to be opened, inspected, modified, printed, or exported. If the workflow follows predictable rules and the API provides the required capabilities, an application could perform those operations automatically, rather than requiring someone to process every drawing manually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Customization opens another set of possibilities. A company might have specific layer standards, required blocks, title block conventions, or drawing checks that must be completed before release. Using the DraftSight API, developers can build add-ins around workflows like these and integrate them into the DraftSight user experience.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The same principle applies to integration. Drawing numbers, revisions, materials, attributes, part numbers, and project information may need to move between CAD and other systems. APIs provide a mechanism for software to exchange that information rather than relying entirely on manual transfer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">None of this is new simply because AI has entered the picture. The DraftSight API already provides the underlying capabilities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What is changing is how someone can approach using them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>AI Can Help Bridge the Gap Between an Idea and the API\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Traditional API development requires the developer to translate a requirement into a series of technical decisions: which API objects and methods to use, what parameters they expect, and how to structure the code.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the webinar, Brian uses Claude Co-work to assist with that process.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rather than beginning with code, he begins with a problem or an idea. AI helps him work through the DraftSight API documentation, generate code, and troubleshoot errors as he builds working add-ins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI does not remove the human part of development. Brian defines what he wants to accomplish. He decides what the user experience should be. He tests what the AI produces inside DraftSight. When something fails, he reports what happened and continues iterating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The process is not one prompt followed by a perfect application. It is a collaboration built around domain knowledge, testing, feedback, and refinement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The webinar shows what that process looks like through several very different DraftSight add-ins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Bringing an AI Assistant Into DraftSight\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Brian’s first idea sounds simple: instead of continually switching between DraftSight and a browser to use an AI assistant, why not put the AI experience directly alongside the drawing?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The result is a custom DraftSight add-in with a dockable AI chat palette.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The palette gives users access to different AI providers while they continue working in DraftSight. In the demonstration, Brian asks questions about DraftSight workflows and uses AI for design guidance, all within the CAD environment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The example has an important boundary. The AI assistant does not directly read or modify the drawing through this add-in. It is there as a resource for the person doing the work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This boundary is useful when thinking about AI’s role in design. AI doesn’t replace the designer’s judgment or take control of the design process. It can augment the person doing the work by making information, guidance, and troubleshooting help more readily available while that person remains responsible for the drawing and the decisions behind it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The finished palette is interesting, but the development story behind it is arguably more important.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Brian didn’t know how to architect the add-in, write its C++ and C# components, build the browser integration, register the application correctly, or package it for installation. Working with Claude Co-work, he went through architecture, coding, and testing before deployment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When an early version produced an error, he sent it back to Claude. When the add-in failed to appear in DraftSight, he reported the result and continued troubleshooting. Eventually, the add-in loaded successfully and was packaged with a simplified installation process.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Then the Experiments Get More Ambitious\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once the first architecture was working, Brian began testing what else he could build. One experiment tackles a file interoperability problem: bringing geometry from a Rhino 3DM file into DraftSight through a custom add-in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This example also shows why understanding an API’s limitations matters. The resulting tool is not presented as a perfect 3DM importer. During development, Claude checked what the DraftSight API could support. When the team explored native import of solids and surfaces, the available API did not provide the path needed to create the required BREP geometry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The resulting add-in creates a usable representation of supported geometry inside DraftSight that you can view, reference, navigate, and incorporate into the drawing workflow. This is an example of something that becomes important whenever AI is used for technical work: the goal is not simply to generate an answer. The result still needs to be checked against what the underlying software and API can do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Rethinking an Existing G-Code Workflow\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Not every AI-assisted development project needs to start from scratch. For another example, Brian takes an existing DraftSight G-code generator add-in and asks Claude to help redesign it. The objective is partly visual, but it goes deeper than changing the interface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The workflow has been reorganized into clearer sections for export, import, and profiles. The project also adds multiple G-code profiles, color-coded toolpath visualization inside DraftSight, and the ability to import existing G-code into a drawing for visualization and troubleshooting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the demonstration, you can select DraftSight geometry and convert it into machining operations before generating G-code. In the other direction, users can import existing G-code and reconstruct it as DraftSight geometry, providing a visual representation of the code’s description.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The example also includes unfinished work. The toolpath visualization does not yet display exactly as Brian wants. AI-assisted development still involves iteration. Test it, figure out what’s wrong, describe the problem, and revise. Then test again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>A Smaller Idea Can Still Solve a Real Problem\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The final example turns from file translation and manufacturing workflows to something more familiar: learning how to use CAD commands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Brian creates a Command Advisor that displays information in a dockable DraftSight palette when a supported ribbon command is selected. The palette provides command syntax, available option keys, and practical tips before the user launches the command and returns to the drawing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The library covers roughly 80 commands across nine ribbon tabs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is a simple idea compared with translating 3DM geometry or generating G-code, but that is precisely why it is useful. Custom development does not always have to solve a large engineering problem. Sometimes it can simply remove friction from an everyday task.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Start With the Problem, Not the Code\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Across all four examples, the starting point is an understanding of the work. What are you doing repeatedly today? Where are people manually transferring information that could move automatically instead? Those are questions a CAD user, designer, engineer, or organization may be better positioned to answer than an AI system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">AI can also assist with another part of the process: navigating API documentation, generating code, and diagnosing errors. The DraftSight API provides the mechanisms for interacting with the application. The person provides the problem, context, testing, judgment, and definition of a useful result.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The webinar brings those pieces together through demonstrations, including parts that required troubleshooting and places where the API imposed limits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you have ever looked at a repetitive DraftSight workflow and thought, “There should be a better way to do this,” the on-demand session is worth watching. The examples offer a practical look at how ideas can move from a CAD user’s experience into custom DraftSight functionality with AI.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Watch the on-demand webinar,\u003C\u002Fstrong> \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fyoutu.be\u002FK4He0N00sGM\">\u003Cstrong>\u003Cem>Build Custom DraftSight Add-Ins with AI\u003C\u002Fem>\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fa>\u003Cstrong>, to see the add-ins in action and follow the development process behind them.\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\n\n\n\u003Cp class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u003Cstrong>Try DraftSight for Free for 30 days.\u003C\u002Fstrong>\u003C\u002Fp>\n","2026-10-06T06:00:00","",{"node":29,"__typename":37},{"nicename":30,"description":31,"slug":30,"name":32,"firstName":32,"lastName":27,"avatar":33,"__typename":36},"draftsight","DraftSight is a professional-grade 2D CAD product that allows you to access existing DWG files and create new ones at fraction of the cost of alternative CAD products.","DraftSight",{"url":34,"__typename":35},"https:\u002F\u002Fblog-assets.solidworks.com\u002Fuploads\u002F2025\u002F12\u002Fdraftsight-avatar.jpg-96x96.webp","Avatar","User","NodeWithAuthorToUserConnectionEdge",{"nodes":39,"edges":46,"__typename":51},[40],{"id":41,"name":42,"slug":43,"uri":44,"__typename":45},"dGVybTo5NTY1","Events","events","\u002Fmastering\u002Fevents\u002F","Taxonomy_mastering",[47],{"isPrimary":48,"node":49,"__typename":50},true,{"id":41,"name":42,"slug":43,"uri":44,"__typename":45},"PostToTaxonomy_masteringConnectionEdge","PostToTaxonomy_masteringConnection",{"nodes":53,"__typename":78},[54,60,65,70,75],{"id":55,"name":56,"slug":57,"uri":58,"__typename":59},"dGVybTo5NjAw","2D CAD","2d-cad","\u002Ftags\u002F2d-cad\u002F","Taxonomy_tag",{"id":61,"name":62,"slug":63,"uri":64,"__typename":59},"dGVybTo5NjEw","AI","ai","\u002Ftags\u002Fai\u002F",{"id":66,"name":67,"slug":68,"uri":69,"__typename":59},"dGVybTo5NjI0","Dassault Systemes","dassault-systemes","\u002Ftags\u002Fdassault-systemes\u002F",{"id":71,"name":72,"slug":73,"uri":74,"__typename":59},"dGVybTo5NTk5","Design","design","\u002Ftags\u002Fdesign\u002F",{"id":76,"name":32,"slug":30,"uri":77,"__typename":59},"dGVybTo5NTk1","\u002Ftags\u002Fdraftsight\u002F","PostToTaxonomy_tagConnection",{"edges":80,"nodes":87,"__typename":89},[81],{"isPrimary":48,"node":82,"__typename":86},{"id":83,"name":32,"slug":30,"uri":84,"__typename":85},"dGVybTo1NQ==","\u002Fproducts\u002Fdraftsight\u002F","Taxonomy_product","PostToTaxonomy_productConnectionEdge",[88],{"id":83,"name":32,"slug":30,"uri":84,"__typename":85},"PostToTaxonomy_productConnection",{"nodes":91,"edges":103,"__typename":107},[92],{"id":93,"name":56,"slug":57,"uri":94,"parentId":95,"disciplines":96,"__typename":102},"dGVybTo5NzM1","\u002Fdisciplines\u002F2d-cad\u002F",null,{"nodes":97,"__typename":101},[98],{"title":56,"uri":99,"parentId":95,"__typename":100},"\u002Fdisciplines\u002F2d-cad","Discipline","Taxonomy_disciplineToDisciplineConnection","Taxonomy_discipline",[104],{"isPrimary":48,"node":105,"__typename":106},{"parentId":95,"id":93,"name":56,"slug":57,"uri":94,"__typename":102},"PostToTaxonomy_disciplineConnectionEdge","PostToTaxonomy_disciplineConnection",{"canonical":109,"title":110,"metaDesc":111,"opengraphAuthor":27,"opengraphDescription":111,"opengraphTitle":9,"opengraphUrl":109,"opengraphSiteName":112,"opengraphPublishedTime":113,"opengraphModifiedTime":27,"twitterTitle":27,"twitterDescription":27,"readingTime":114,"metaRobotsNoindex":115,"__typename":116},"https:\u002F\u002Fblogs.solidworks.com\u002Fproducts\u002Fdraftsight\u002Fbuild-custom-draftsight-add-ins-with-ai-you-dont-have-to-start-with-code\u002F","Build Custom DraftSight Add-Ins With AI: You Don’t Have to Start With Code - Blog Solidworks","In this on-demand webinar, DraftSight Technical Sales Manager Brian Vanasse shows how he used AI with the DraftSight API. 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