Notes from
the forge
How AI reverse engineering, image to CAD and vibe-CADing work in practice, and how parts that used to be imported get made in Egypt and the GCC.
What is vibe-CADing?
Vibe-CADing is designing physical parts by stating intent (a photo, a scan or a sentence) and letting AI write the parametric CAD, while you steer with real dimensions and check the result against the part.
Articles
AI reverse engineering
What is AI reverse engineering? From a physical part to editable CAD
AI reverse engineering rebuilds a physical part as editable parametric CAD from photos, an STL scan or a STEP file. How it works, what you get, where it fits.
4 min read
Image to CAD
Image to CAD: how to photograph a part so AI can model it
A practical guide to image-to-CAD: how to photograph a physical part, which measurement to give the AI, and how to check the parametric model before you make it.
3 min read
STL to CAD
STL to CAD: turning a mesh into an editable parametric model
An STL file is triangles, not features. How AI turns a scan or mesh into an editable parametric CAD model, checks it against the file and exports STEP.
4 min read
Vibe-CADing
Vibe coding vs vibe-CADing: what changes when the output has to fit
Vibe coding works because code has tests; physical parts do not. Five differences between vibe coding and vibe-CADing, and what a good tool does about them.
3 min read
Small-batch production
Replacing an imported plastic part locally: from one sample to 20 units
How a broken or hard-to-source plastic part becomes a CAD model and 20 locally made units in Egypt or the GCC, without a drawing, a mould or a minimum order.
3 min read