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Copilot is evolving fast—from a helpful assistant to a true design partner. Today, it can generate smart BOMs, place components in your schematic, suggest replacements, and even learn how you design through custom knowledge base entries. For many workflows, it’s already the fastest way to move your project forward.

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Copilot is evolving fast—from a helpful assistant to a true design partner. Today, it can generate smart BOMs, place components in your schematic, suggest replacements, and even learn how you design through custom knowledge base entries. For many workflows, it’s already the fastest way to move your project forward.

But for Copilot to truly shine, the interface needs to get out of the way.

Until now, working with Copilot often meant bouncing between tabs—opening the object browser, toggling the Inspector, trying to remember where you saw something last. That’s friction. And friction slows down flow.

So we redesigned the layout to match how modern engineers work: with AI alongside them.

This update brings more than just polish—it’s the foundation for a faster, more fluid design experience, built around the way Copilot is used today and the way we see it evolving tomorrow.

What’s New in the Layout

  • Copilot is now docked on the left, where your prompts and questions typically begin.
  • Part library and object tree are now placed on the right, where a collapsible Inspector sits alongside them, giving you immediate access to the tools you reference most.
  • The chat interface has been redesigned for clarity, with a clean left-right layout: your messages appear on the right in blue bubbles, Copilot responses appear on the left. The conversation is prioritized, while actions and metadata recede, only showing up at the right times.
  • Prompt suggestions only appear after the most recent Copilot message, keeping threads focused and uncluttered.
  • When Copilot is formulating a response, it shows context, tools, and reasoning inline—then collapses them into the message header once the reply streams in. You can always expand to see what it used.

This setup reduces interface friction—less tab switching, less mouse travel, and more continuous momentum throughout your workflow. The new layout improves the core ECAD experience too—placing the object browser and Inspector side-by-side, making it easier to inspect and modify your design at a glance. Less jumping around. More flow.

Faster Workflows with Copilot

This isn’t just a visual update—it’s a real improvement in how you work. With the new layout, these tasks now feel dramatically smoother:

  • Generate a block diagram - Simply have a conversation with Copilot about what you intend to build using as much information as you know. Copilot can use your requirements and constraints to explore many different architectural ideas and variations quickly.
  • BoM Generation - Just describe what you're building in natural language. Copilot will recommend key components by searching the parts library, reading datasheets, and applying its internal knowledge.
  • Swap Parts Without Losing Context - Need to replace a part but keep key specs? Now you can use Copilot and the Inspector side-by-side. Describe the changes you need, and immediately browse recommended part properties.
  • Place Multiple Parts in Seconds - After generating a BOM, Copilot can now drop components directly into your schematic—no manual lookup required.
  • Teach Copilot How You Work - Add naming conventions, preferred parts, or layout rules to your knowledge base, and Copilot will start adapting—carrying your preferences across projects automatically.

Setting the foundation for the future

This update is more than just a layout shift. It reflects a core belief: AI isn’t just a feature—it’s becoming the interface. Looking ahead, we’re building toward a future where hardware design starts with a conversation. You’ll always have full control—nothing is hidden in a black box—but we envision a workflow where your ideas move from prompt to PCB through an intelligent, adaptable partner. Eventually, you may find yourself managing a team of AI collaborators, each handling part of the design process in parallel, all coordinated through natural language.

Try the New Layout Today

Flux is getting smarter, faster, and more intuitive—so you can spend less time managing tabs and more time designing boards. Whether you’re a first-timer or returning after a break, now’s the perfect moment to jump in.

👉 Open Flux and try the new Copilot-first layout today.

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Lance Cassidy

Lance is Co-Founder & CDO of Flux, a hardware design platform that’s revolutionizing how teams create and iterate on circuits. Find him on Flux @lwcassid

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Illustration of sub-layout. Several groups of parts and traces hover above a layout.
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Screenshot of the Flux app showing a PCB in 3D mode with collaborative cursors, a comment thread pinned on the canvas, and live pricing and availability for a part on the board.
Build PCBs with an AI Teammate
An AI-powered eCAD platform featuring Flux Copilot—an AI teammate that reviews schematics, reads datasheets, and can even route your board.
Screenshot of the Flux app showing a PCB in 3D mode with collaborative cursors, a comment thread pinned on the canvas, and live pricing and availability for a part on the board.
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