KiCad Copilot
MCP server that lets AI agents generate and modify KiCad schematics, place PCBs, route locally, and automate projects through saved project files.
What it does and how it connects
KiCad Copilot is an MCP server that gives AI agents a file-oriented interface to KiCad. It generates and modifies schematics from natural language, searches real components by part number, works with hierarchical projects, generates PCB placement from a compact JavaScript DSL, routes boards locally, and creates simple copper pours, all against saved .kicad_pro, .kicad_sch, and .kicad_pcb files.
It does not require KiCad IPC or a plugin installed inside KiCad. Placement previews render as PNG or SVG for review before the approved result is applied, and checkpoints save, list, and restore exact versions of individual KiCad files. Local routing uses eda-copilot-router with its managed KRT backend, so no routing work goes to an external service.
Its analysis tools download a pinned, verified kicad-happy v2.2.0 release on first use and return compact findings, and native kicad-cli integration covers ERC, DRC, previews, exports, and manufacturing files. The README notes the project is the KiCad counterpart to the author's EasyEDA Copilot.
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 (blwfish)
An MCP server that runs a full KiCad workflow from a plain language description to manufacturing files, with LCSC and JLCPCB part search.
- Konnect
A native KiCad 10 plugin in Rust exposing schematic, layout, routing, and manufacturing tools over MCP through KiCad's IPC API.
- KiCad AI Assistant
A KiCad action plugin that embeds an LLM chat panel inside KiCad 10 with a built-in MCP server.
- kicad-happy
A set of agent skills that reviews existing KiCad projects for schematic, PCB, EMC, BOM, and fab readiness instead of generating designs.
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
- No independent user voice found: the repository has no public issues.
- Pricing: none stated on the repo.
- A named individual builder beyond the repository owner handle biosshot
Last verified November 6, 2026. Listings are informational. The evidence score measures public, verifiable evidence and is not an endorsement or a compatibility claim.