ProtoMerge

AI-powered merge and version control for CAD files in remote teams

Score: 7.4/10KenyaHard BuildReady to Spawn
Brand Colors

The Opportunity

Problem

Remote workers in manufacturing struggle with clunky CAD collaboration tools that fail to sync reliably across distributed teams.

Solution

ProtoMerge uses AI to intelligently merge conflicting CAD changes from distributed engineers, reducing manual rework. It provides visual diffs, auto-resolves simple conflicts, and maintains full version history. Sync reliably without full re-uploads.

Target Audience

Remote engineers and designers in manufacturing companies using CAD software for distributed team collaboration

Differentiator

AI conflict resolution tailored for CAD geometry and params – 70% auto-merge rate

Brand Voice

friendly

Features

CAD Version Control

must-have20h

Git-like versioning for CAD files with branches

Visual Diff Viewer

must-have25h

Side-by-side 3D diff of changes

AI Merge

must-have30h

Auto-merge non-conflicting changes, suggest resolutions

Branching & Pull Requests

must-have18h

Create branches, submit PRs for review

Sync Agent

must-have15h

Desktop app snippet for local CAD to cloud sync

Change Logs

must-have12h

AI-generated summaries of what changed

Rollback

nice-to-have10h

One-click revert to any version

Team Notifications

nice-to-have8h

Email/Slack alerts on merges

Metrics Dashboard

nice-to-have12h

Track merge success rates per team

CAD Parser Upgrades

future25h

Support more formats via ML

Total Build Time: 175 hours

Database Schema

users

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
emailtextNo

Relationships:

  • one-to-many repos

repos

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
nametextNo
owner_iduuidNo

Relationships:

  • one-to-many branches

branches

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
repo_iduuidNo
nametextNo

Relationships:

  • one-to-many commits

commits

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
branch_iduuidNo
file_pathtextNo
ai_summarytextYes
mergedboolNo

API Endpoints

POST
/api/repos/merge

AI merge two branches

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/branches/:id/diff

Get visual diff data

🔒 Auth Required
POST
/api/commits

Create new commit

🔒 Auth Required

Tech Stack

Frontend
Next.js 14 + Tailwind + Three.js
Backend
Supabase + OpenAI API
Database
Supabase Postgres
Auth
Supabase Auth
Payments
Stripe
Hosting
Vercel
Additional Tools
Supabase StorageVercel AI SDK

Build Timeline

Week 1: Repo and version basics

40h
  • Auth
  • Repo creation
  • Commit upload

Week 2: Diff viewer

45h
  • 3D diff UI
  • Branching

Week 3: AI integration

55h
  • OpenAI merge logic
  • Summaries

Week 4: Workflows and sync

45h
  • PRs
  • Sync agent prototype
  • Notifications

Week 5: Polish and payments

35h
  • Dashboard
  • Stripe
  • Testing
Total Timeline: 5 weeks • 220 hours

Pricing Tiers

Free

$0/mo

Basic diffs only

  • 1 repo
  • 10 merges/mo

Pro

$39/mo

None

  • Unlimited repos
  • Unlimited AI merges
  • Advanced diffs

Enterprise

$99/mo

None

  • All Pro + Custom AI
  • On-prem sync
  • Priority

Revenue Projections

MonthUsersConversionMRRARR
Month 1801%$40$480
Month 64004%$640$7,680

Unit Economics

$35
CAC
$650
LTV
5%
Churn
88%
Margin
LTV:CAC Ratio: 18.6xExcellent!

Landing Page Copy

AI Merges Your CAD Conflicts Automatically

Version control + smart diffs for remote manufacturing – goodbye manual fixes.

Feature Highlights

Visual 3D diffs
70% auto-merge
Branching workflows
Change summaries
Reliable sync

Social Proof (Placeholders)

"'Merges what took hours in minutes' – CAD Lead"
"'Essential for our remote setup' – Team Eng"

First Three Customers

Demo AI merge video on YouTube/Reddit r/CAD; Cold email manufacturing VCs for intros; Free access to GitHub CAD repos owners.

Launch Channels

Product Huntr/SolidWorksLinkedIn ManufacturingTwitter #3DPrinting

SEO Keywords

CAD merge toolAI CAD version controlremote CAD conflict resolutionCAD git alternativemanufacturing CAD branching

Competitive Analysis

Fusion 360 Versioning

autodesk.com
$70/mo
Strength

Integrated

Weakness

Poor merge for branches

Our Advantage

AI-powered smart merges

🏰 Moat Strategy

Improving AI from merge data feedback loop

⏰ Why Now?

Generative AI maturity + exploding remote engineering needs

Risks & Mitigation

technicalhigh severity

AI accuracy on complex geometry

Mitigation

Hybrid manual/AI + user feedback training

financialmedium severity

OpenAI costs spike

Mitigation

Tiered usage + caching

Validation Roadmap

pre-build10 days

Validate with 5 teams' sample files

Success: 50% auto-merge success

Pivot Options

  • General file merge SaaS
  • CAD diff viewer only
  • Backup versioning

Quick Stats

Build Time
220h
Target MRR (6 mo)
$2,000
Market Size
$400.0M
Features
10
Database Tables
4
API Endpoints
3