Zoo is building a new, AI-native CAD app, Zoo Design Studio, with its Zookeeper agent built in. Adam is an AI mechanical engineer that works inside the tools your team already uses. Here is how they compare, with sources, and when each one fits.
An AI mechanical engineer for hardware teams. It plugs into the workspace you already have, so there is no new CAD app to learn and nothing to migrate.
A new CAD environment that puts point-and-click modeling, code (KCL) and an AI agent in one app, plus an API for developers.12
| What you need | Adam | Zoo |
|---|---|---|
| 01How it works | ||
| Where you work | Inside the tools your team already uses, with no extra setup or migration | In Zoo Design Studio, Zoo’s own CAD app, on desktop or in the browser13 |
| CAD tools | Onshape, Autodesk Fusion, SOLIDWORKS and Rhino | Zoo Design Studio. On enterprise plans, files from SolidWorks, CATIA, Creo, NX and others are converted to Zoo’s KCL format6 |
| Ways to work | From a prompt, a 2D drawing or your existing models | Point-and-click, code (KCL) or the Zookeeper agent12 |
| 02What it does | ||
| Generate a part from a description | Yes, from a prompt | Yes. Zookeeper creates editable models from a prompt4 |
| 2D drawing to 3D model | Yes, from a 2D drawing to a 3D CAD model | Not listed on its site |
| Edit existing parts | Yes, including ECO-driven changes that pull failure data from PLM and simulation | Zookeeper can iterate on an existing design4 |
| Simulation (FEA) | A CAD-to-FEA loop: Adam connects your simulation and CAD software and iterates on the design | On the roadmap: Zoo lists Analyze as next, after Design1 |
| Manufacturability | DFM checks against your company’s own docs | Zookeeper evaluates manufacturability as you design1 |
| 03Security and data | ||
| SOC 2 | SOC 2 compliant | SOC 2 Type II, with the report public on trust.zoo.dev5 |
| Your data and training | Your data stays private on enterprise plans | Free plan: Zoo can train on your data, with no opt-out. Plus and Pro: opt out by hand. Team and Enterprise: excluded by default57 |
| 04Buying | ||
| How to start | Try Adam, or book a demo with our team | A free plan; Plus at $20 and Pro at $99 a month; Team at $399 per user a month; Enterprise through sales7 |
Zoo is building its own AI-native CAD app, Zoo Design Studio, with the Zookeeper agent built in. Adam works inside the CAD and engineering tools your team already uses, across drawings, simulation, part edits and DFM checks.14
No. Adam plugs into your existing workspace, so there is no extra setup or migration.
According to Zoo’s enterprise page, Zoo converts files from SolidWorks, CATIA, Creo, NX and other CAD tools into its own KCL format.6
Yes. Adam is SOC 2 compliant, and your data stays private on enterprise plans. Zoo publishes a SOC 2 Type II report on trust.zoo.dev.5
Try Adam, or book a demo with our team, with the buttons on this page.
Everything this page says about Zoo comes from Zoo’s own public pages, checked on 2 Oct 2026. Products change, so if something here is out of date, tell us and we’ll fix it.