Does SolidWorks Have AI?

Last updated: August 2026

Does SolidWorks have AI? Yes, but the honest answer has two halves, and the marketing tends to blur them. Some AI runs on your desktop today and needs nothing extra. The headline conversational AI, the Virtual Companions Dassault has been promoting, runs on a separate cloud platform and is still in beta. Knowing which is which is the difference between a realistic plan and a disappointment. This guide sorts SolidWorks AI into what actually ships on the desktop, what is cloud and still early, and where generative design fits, with the licensing catches spelled out. For the wider decision of whether any of it earns its keep, see whether AI CAD tools are worth it, and for the full mechanical toolkit, the hub on the best AI tools for mechanical engineering.

The two kinds of AI in SolidWorks

The single most useful thing to understand is that SolidWorks AI is not one product. It splits cleanly in two, and they have different maturity, licensing, and privacy profiles.

• Desktop, on-device automation. Machine-learning helpers built into SolidWorks that run locally, are included with a normal license, and need no internet. This is the mature half.
• Cloud Virtual Companions. Conversational AI assistants that live on Dassault’s 3DEXPERIENCE platform, are in beta or early access, and process on the cloud. This is the headline half, and the less finished one.

Confusing the two is the usual source of disappointment. The chatty assistant you saw in a launch video is the cloud half, not something already humming inside your desktop seat.

What ships on the desktop today

Desktop SolidWorks includes on-device automation that resellers describe as its practical, here-now AI: command prediction that anticipates your next tool from workflow context, automatic recognition of fasteners and assembly components, and machine-assisted repair of broken sketch relations and mate references (GoEngineer). These run locally and come with a standard license, which also means they raise none of the cloud data questions that come with uploading models elsewhere.

Alongside these sit the long-standing “Xpert” tools, such as FilletXpert and FeatureWorks, that automated rule-based decisions and feature recognition years before the AI label arrived. They are not new, but they belong in an honest accounting of what SolidWorks automates for you.

The cloud Virtual Companions: AURA and LEO

The AI that Dassault has promoted most is its family of Virtual Companions. In its 2026 platform announcement, Dassault describes AURA as a program-management companion and LEO as a complex-engineering companion, both running on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform (Dassault Systemes). SolidWorks 2026, announced in late 2025, surfaces these companions to desktop users through a new SolidWorks Labs tab, but the intelligence itself runs on the cloud platform (Dassault Systemes).

Two cautions matter here. First, these companions are in beta or early access, so as one reseller puts it, a successful response only confirms the system produced an output, not that the output is correct (Hawk Ridge Systems). Verify everything, the same discipline our guide to the limitations of AI in engineering argues for across the board. Second, because they process on the cloud, your model data leaves your machine, so weigh that as carefully as you would before you upload CAD files to ChatGPT or worry about whether a tool trains on your drawings.

Generative design and topology optimization

The oldest genuinely optimization-driven capability in SolidWorks is Topology Study, which reshapes a part to hit a goal such as the best stiffness for the least mass. It is not new AI branding: it has been available since SolidWorks 2018, and it requires a SolidWorks Simulation Professional or Premium license (SolidWorks Help). If your interest in “AI in SolidWorks” is really about generative, weight-saving geometry, this is the shipped, dependable answer, and it sits closer to the analysis tools covered in our roundup of AI structural analysis software than to the conversational companions.

Broader industry data suggests engineers are adopting these assistants quickly: a 2026 survey of 350 senior engineering leaders found roughly two-thirds had adopted AI copilots across engineering workflows, as reported by SimScale’s State of Engineering AI 2026 (Manufacturing Dive). Adoption is not the same as reliability, though, which is why the beta caveats above still govern how far to trust the output.

Frequently asked questions

Does SolidWorks have AI built in, or do you need the cloud?

Both. Desktop SolidWorks includes on-device automation such as command prediction, fastener recognition, and sketch and mate repair, included with a normal license and running locally. The conversational Virtual Companions, AURA and LEO, run on the 3DEXPERIENCE cloud platform and are in beta or early access.

What are AURA and LEO in SolidWorks?

They are Dassault’s AI Virtual Companions. In Dassault’s 2026 platform announcement, AURA is described as a program-management companion and LEO as a complex-engineering companion, both on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. SolidWorks 2026 surfaces them through a SolidWorks Labs tab, but they run on the cloud and are still early access.

Is “Leo AI” the same as SolidWorks’ LEO?

No, and this trips people up. Dassault’s LEO is a built-in Virtual Companion on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform. “Leo AI” is a separate, independent company that sells a third-party copilot which integrates with SolidWorks. They share a name but are not the same product or vendor.

Does SolidWorks have generative design or topology optimization?

Yes. Topology Study performs optimization-driven shape and topology optimization and has shipped since SolidWorks 2018. It requires a SolidWorks Simulation Professional or Premium license, so it is not included with a base seat.

Does SolidWorks AI cost extra?

It depends on the feature. The desktop on-device automation is included with a standard license. Topology Study needs a Simulation Professional or Premium license, and the cloud Virtual Companions require the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, where access is typically credit or subscription based. Confirm current terms with your reseller, since these change often.

Can SolidWorks generate a model from a prompt or a 2D file?

Some cloud and browser workflows on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform aim at generative and conversion tasks, but the more advanced ones are early access or roadmap rather than dependable desktop features. Treat any demo of prompt-to-model or PDF-to-3D as something to verify against your own use before relying on it.

Sources

• AURA and LEO Virtual Companions on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform: Dassault Systemes
• SolidWorks 2026 AI-powered design announcement: Dassault Systemes
• Topology Study, availability and licensing: SolidWorks Help
• Desktop AI features overview (reseller): GoEngineer
• Beta and early-access caveats (reseller): Hawk Ridge Systems
• AI adoption among engineering leaders, 2026: Manufacturing Dive

About the author: this guide was written and edited by the CognitiveFuture editorial team, which researches how AI tools fit real professional workflows. We cite primary sources for the claims we make and update our recommendations as products change. We do not test products ourselves; our assessments synthesize official documentation and primary reporting. Feature availability, beta status, and licensing change often, so confirm current details with Dassault or your reseller before you buy.

About the author

Richard Johnson

Richard Johnson is an AI specialist at one of the world's largest technology companies, where he has spent the past three years helping organizations adopt AI. CognitiveFuture extends that work publicly: gathering the available evidence on each tool, from vendor documentation to independent reviews and user feedback, and cutting a crowded market down to the right choice for the job in front of you.