How Shovels works
- 1
Submit your idea
Describe what it does and who it's for. Add sketches, photos or reference products if you have them. You can skip technical details you don't know.
A product designer reviews every submission and tells you whether it's a fit, or what we'd need to know first.
- 2
Concept package
We develop illustrated concept directions and a written product brief: requirements, users, risks and open questions.
AI helps us draft and explore quickly. A person reviews everything before you see it, and estimates are labeled as estimates.
- 3
Technical review
An engineer checks feasibility, flags regulatory or safety questions, and outlines materials, components and an electronics architecture where relevant.
Health, battery, wireless, children's and safety-critical products get extra review. We never claim certification we don't have evidence for.
- 4
Prototype quote
You get a written quote with scope, deliverables, exclusions, assumptions, timeline estimate and payment schedule.
Nothing is charged until you accept. If parts or engineering would cost more later, we ask for your written approval first.
- 5
Physical delivery
Partners produce CAD, PCB layout, firmware and fabrication as the scope requires. We test against agreed criteria and ship it to you.
You review and confirm delivery. If something isn't right, report it from your project page.
What AI does here
Claude helps our team summarize your submission, draft concept briefs, list risks and prepare supplier requests. It drafts; people decide.
What it doesn't do
AI doesn't produce manufacturing-ready CAD or circuit boards from a prompt, place orders, or email you on its own. Engineers and partners do the build work.
Who sees your files
Only you and the Shovels team on your project. Suppliers get only what they need for a quote, without your personal details.