KiCad AI Assistant
LLM-powered plugin for KiCad 10 with a maintained release pipeline and a packaged installer zip.
What it does and how it connects
KiCad AI Assistant is a KiCad action plugin that embeds an LLM-powered chat panel directly inside KiCad. It runs a built-in MCP server and exposes tools so the LLM can read and edit schematics and PCB layouts through natural-language conversation. It is tested on KiCad 10.0 on Linux and Windows.
The tool set covers project and symbol library work, schematic editing and analysis, hierarchical sheets, PCB query and editing, placement, groups, zones, DRC and design rules, versioning and export, and a skill system, plus KiCad IPC. A standalone MCP server mode is also documented.
Setup needs KiCad 10.0 or later, uv for the Python virtual environment, and an API key for OpenAI, Anthropic, Amazon Bedrock, or a compatible LLM provider (Ollama needs none). Installation is a packaged kicad_ai_assistant.zip from the Releases page, unzipped into KiCad's plugin directory.
What engineers report
Ollama streaming request failed: can only concatenate str (not "dict") to str
2026-11-03Read the original
Alternatives
Compare side by side- kicad-mcp-pro
An MCP server with profile-gated access to KiCad schematic, PCB, validation, DFM, and manufacturing export tools.
- kicad-mcp (draganito)
A compact Rust MCP server that drives a running KiCad 10 PCB editor over the official IPC API, aimed at JLCPCB orders.
- Konnect
A native KiCad 10 plugin in Rust exposing schematic, layout, routing, and manufacturing tools over MCP through KiCad's IPC API.
- KiCad Copilot
An MCP server that generates and modifies KiCad schematics and PCBs from natural language, with local routing and recoverable checkpoints.
- kicad-claude-mcp
An MCP server with 105 tools that edits KiCad schematic and PCB files directly and runs Freerouting autorouting and ERC/DRC.
Recurring errors it addresses
Error Index entries this tool is built to reduce or work around.
- Interactive routing creates unwanted micro-segments and awkward paths that take time to clean up.Error Index
- Grid snap and move commands can disconnect items or reposition them in unwanted ways.Error Index
- GUI lag, occasional freezes, and sluggish editor switching interrupt concentration.Error Index
- Wayland/NVIDIA users report graphical glitches, flicker, or instability.Error Index
- A KiCad MCP bridge normalizes DRC, connectivity, and geometry into its own output format, and that normalized output can silently disagree with the native KiCad engine. The maintainer had to build seeded false-PASS and false-FAIL tests because the bridge layer cannot be trusted as engineering truth on its own.Error Index
Sources
Not verified
- Pricing: none stated on the repo.
- A named individual builder beyond the repository owner handle paul356
Last verified November 6, 2026. Listings are informational. The evidence score measures public, verifiable evidence and is not an endorsement or a compatibility claim.