This episode continues where the last one left off, diving into Part 2 of Seve's blog post “13 Things I Wish I Knew Before Building an Autorouter.” 🧠⚡ Seve (founder of tscircuit) and Matt (founder of atopile) explore the deep technical challenges of auto-routing printed circuit boards using code, compiler toolchains, and caching, rather than traditional schematics-based tools.
In this second half, they unpack:
* Why caching is crucial for speeding up PCB auto-routing
* Visualization as a debugging superpower
* The power of PyInstrument and visual profiling tools
* Why recursive functions and Monte Carlo methods often fail in optimization
* Game dev tricks (like greedy A*) adapted for PCB pathfinding
* The difference between grid-based vs intersection-based routing math
* Why keeping results grounded in physical space (like millimeters) makes debugging easier
* Using animation to catch stupid behavior before it goes live
* How a meta-router manages multiple strategies in parallel
* Insights from CNC machines and high-fidelity spatial modeling
This episode is packed with Seve and Matt's hands-on experiences, hard-won insights, and sharp advice for anyone building or using modern, code-first electronics design tools.
🛠 Whether you're a PCB engineer, systems architect, or startup founder in the hardware space, this conversation is pure gold.
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