OpenBOM Launches Private Beta of AI BOM Agent Revolutionizing Manufacturing Workflows

OpenBOM's AI BOM Agent: The Future of Intelligent Manufacturing Workflows

OpenBOM, a prominent player in the realm of cloud-native Product Data Management (PDM) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) software, has set the stage for a revolution in manufacturing processes. On September 16, 2025, the company announced the launch of its private beta version of the AI BOM Agent featuring Model Context Protocol (MCP) support. This innovative tool is a cornerstone of OpenBOM's commitment to delivering enhanced intelligence, connectivity, and automation tailored for engineers and manufacturers alike.

Harnessing AI for Seamless Engineering Workflows

In a landscape where traditional practices can often hinder efficiency, OpenBOM is redefining how engineering workflows are approached. Instead of modifying the existing practices that engineers are accustomed to, the company has developed AI agents that seamlessly integrate and understand current tools, file formats, and data sets. These intelligent agents can connect to various data sources, organize information, and automate mundane tasks, making it possible to access product data through natural conversation.

This initiative is built upon an innovative concept known as product memory. This coherent knowledge model is designed to encapsulate every stage of product development, from design and engineering to manufacturing and procurement. The integration of MCP will allow OpenBOM agents to ingest, restructure, and interlink data, creating a digital thread that enhances decision-making and facilitates user-friendly inquiries.

Addressing the Challenges of BOM Management

One of the persistent challenges that manufacturers face is managing Bills of Materials (BOMs) via Excel files. While spreadsheets are a commonly utilized tool within the industry, they are fraught with errors, inconsistencies, and a lack of interconnectedness. The AI BOM Agent aims to tackle these challenges head-on by converting unstructured Excel data into structured knowledge within OpenBOM's graph model, ensuring that product memory is preserved and paving the way for AI-driven operational efficiencies.

A Comprehensive Roadmap for Future Development

The introduction of the BOM Agent marks just the initial step in a broader strategic roadmap. OpenBOM's future plans encompass a full spectrum of capabilities ranging from seamless data ingestion and intuitive natural language queries to automatic agent-driven workflows. Ultimately, the goal is to create a connected product memory that facilitates collaboration between projects, components, and suppliers, thereby enhancing accuracy and promoting smarter decision-making among engineers.

Oleg Shilovitsky, CEO and co-founder of OpenBOM, put it succinctly: “Excel remains the most widely used tool in manufacturing, but it is also the biggest bottleneck. Our vision is to help engineering teams adopt agent-driven workflows. The OpenBOM Agent with MCP support transforms spreadsheets into structured product knowledge—enabling collaboration, traceability, and AI-powered decisions.”

This private beta represents the first stride toward integration of AI into PLM environments, making it practical, unobtrusive, and beneficial.

Access and Participation in the Beta Program

The private beta of the BOM MCP Excel is currently accessible to a select group of OpenBOM customers and partners. Participants will experience the early stages of the ingestion pipeline, where they can witness their CAD and Excel data being transformed into structured, queryable formats. Additionally, feedback from participants will play a crucial role in shaping the tool's future development.

OpenBOM encourages companies interested in participating in the early access program to submit their data, including CAD files and Excel BOMs for transformation. The introduction of the AI BOM Agent signifies a pivotal advancement in OpenBOM's ambition to leverage intelligent workflows—repairing connections across enterprise operations and facilitating conversational access to product memory and the digital thread.

For companies interested in participating, OpenBOM can be contacted via email at [email protected].

About OpenBOM

As a cloud-native digital thread platform, OpenBOM offers PDM, PLM, and ERP capabilities to efficiently manage product data and connect manufacturers with their supply chains. The platform serves to centralize essential product data such as BOMs, engineering changes, and supplier information, streamlining processes across teams and organizations.

OpenBOM’s compatibility with industry-leading design tools—including Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks, Autodesk Fusion, PTC Onshape, and Siemens NX—further solidifies its position as a key player in modern manufacturing. Headquartered in the Boston area, OpenBOM operates as a wholly-owned and branded product of Newman Cloud, Inc. More information is available at www.openbom.com.