OnTrack: The PCB Design Podcast

Altium LLC.
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Tech News
  • Updated Weekly

The PCB Design Podcast features conversations on all facets of PCB Design and Hardware Development

  1. 1d ago

    Code-Based PCB Design with AI: Inside atopile

    Code-based PCB design is reshaping how engineers build hardware, and in this OnTrack Podcast episode, host Zach Peterson sits down with Ioannis Papamanoglou and Narayan Powderly, co-founders of atopile, to explore their code-first, AI-driven approach to PCB design. Drawing on backgrounds at Tesla and across the electronics industry, the founders explain why hardware has lagged behind software tooling and how capturing engineering intent in code can unlock automation across the entire design process — from requirements capture to schematic capture and layout. You'll learn why the real bottleneck in AI for PCB design is tooling and orchestration rather than raw model capability, how deterministic and nondeterministic layers work together, and why the designer's role is shifting toward system architecture as low-level boilerplate disappears. The conversation also covers test board generation, the Jevons paradox effect on engineering resources, supply chain and firmware integration, and a live demo showing atopile working alongside Altium Designer. Whether you're a PCB designer, hardware engineer, or curious about AI in electronics, this episode offers a grounded look at where code-based hardware design is headed. 💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from  @AltiumAcademy   Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below! 👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1 Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content. 👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/ The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer! About Altium LLC Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California,  is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products. #Altium #PCBDesign #ai

    45 min

  2. Jun 16

    EMC Testing in the Age of AI: Why Respins Aren't Going Away

    EMC testing is one of the toughest hurdles in PCB design, with industry pass rates often falling below 50% and every failure triggering expensive respins. In this OnTrack Podcast episode, host Zach Peterson sits down with Andy Eadie—owner of EMC FastPass and founder of Engentica—to unpack why so many products fail electromagnetic compatibility testing on the first attempt, and what designers can do to get it right up front instead of budgeting for inevitable rework. The conversation digs into the growing role of AI in hardware design: where machine learning genuinely accelerates simulation, signal integrity, and power integrity work, and why a fully generative "design my circuit board" tool is still a long way off. Andy also demos Engentica, an AI-powered design co-pilot that runs compliance-focused checks on schematics and layout, lets engineers investigate EMC risks in natural language, and scales hardware design expertise across an organization. Whether you're a hardware engineer, EMC consultant, or software founder building your first custom PCB, this episode is packed with practical insight on respins, pre-compliance testing, and the future of electronics design. 👉 Resources from this episode: - Get access to Engentica: engentica.com - Check out EMC FastPass: https://emcfastpass.com/ - Connect with Andy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andyeadie/ 💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from  @AltiumAcademy   Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below! 👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1 Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content. 👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/ The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer! About Altium LLC Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California,  is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products. #Altium #EMC #PCBDesign

    47 min

  3. Jun 16

    70% of PCBs FAIL EMC Testing (And AI Is Making It Worse)

    Altium Develop unites your design, sourcing, and manufacturing teams in one cloud platform so EMC and layout problems get caught long before your board ever reaches the test house: https://www.altium.com/develop?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=ontrack-podcast&utm_content=70-of-pcbs-fail-emc-testing-and-ai-is-making-it-worse EMC testing failure rates are climbing toward 70%, and on this episode of the OnTrack Podcast, host Zach Peterson sits down with EMC expert Dr. Anton Tishchenko to unpack why — and what role AI is really playing in modern PCB design. They cut through the AI hype, explaining why large language models will confidently hand you a bad PCB layout, why setting up constraints is "garbage in, garbage out," and why hardware is heading for the same reckoning software already faced. If your boards keep failing radiated emissions, this conversation explains where the real problems start. Anton also demos his web-based EMC analysis tool (pcb4emc.com), an EMC design rule check that works directly from Gerber files — no schematics, no NDAs, no sensitive data required. You'll see how it evaluates ground plane quality, differential and single-ended impedance, return paths, and crosstalk risk using the 3W rule, plus a frank discussion of coplanar waveguides, stackup awareness, and where AI genuinely helps engineers (datasheet summaries, literature reviews, and simulation enhancement) versus where it falls flat. Essential viewing for any PCB designer serious about EMC compliance. 🔗 Try the tool: https://pcbforemc.com/ 🔗 Connect with Anton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antontischenko/ 💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from  @AltiumAcademy   Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below! 👉 Subscribe for more electronics design reviews: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1 Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content. 👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer! About Altium LLC Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California,  is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products. #Altium #EMC #PCBDesign

    44 min

  4. May 19

    The Signal Integrity Tool Every Engineer Is Missing

    Signal integrity engineers working on high-speed serial links, Ethernet, USB, PCI Express, and DDR memory interfaces need powerful simulation tools, but commercial software licenses can be cost-prohibitive. In this episode of the Altium OnTrack Podcast, host Zach Peterson sits down with David Banas, Solutions Engineer at Keysight, to explore three open-source Python packages that are transforming how engineers approach serial link simulation, IBIS-AMI model testing, and channel operating margin analysis. David walks through PyBERT, his most popular tool, demonstrating live how it handles eye diagrams, bathtub curves, jitter analysis, and equalization techniques like CTLE, DFE, and TX de-emphasis.   The pair explore PyIBIS, a Python tool for IBIS-AMI model developers, demonstrating its capabilities in analyzing signal transmission parameters. They look at how it helps debug models and apply equalization techniques to address signal distortion. Understanding this tool is crucial for effective data transmission analysis and ensuring signal integrity, especially when working with complex designs in Altium Designer or Cadence Design Systems.   💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from  @AltiumAcademy   Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!   👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1   Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content.   👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer!   About Altium LLC   Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products.   #SignalIntegrity #PyBERT #OpenSource

    47 min

  5. May 12

    Drones, Robots & the Low-Altitude Economy: A New Industry Is Born

    In this episode of the OnTrack Podcast, Zach Peterson sits down with Gabriel Guglielmi, VP of Global Product Management at Infinite Electronics, to explore one of the most disruptive shifts in electronics today: the rise of unmanned systems. From group one commercial drones to group five collaborative combat aircraft, Gabriel breaks down how the same revolution that transformed the space industry through SpaceX is now reshaping aerospace, defense, public safety, and consumer delivery. Learn why interconnect technology has become just as critical as semiconductor performance, and how a new generation of startups is compressing decades-long development cycles down to mere months.   The conversation digs deep into the supply chain challenges facing US and allied drone manufacturers, the FCC's part 108 regulations, the Department of War's Drone Dominance program, and why companies like Neros and Infinite Electronics see massive opportunity in rebuilding a friendly-nation supply chain. Gabriel also shares his thoughts on humanoid robotics, counter-drone systems, drone racing, agricultural applications, and the emerging low-altitude economy that could rival the internet revolution of the 1990s. Whether you design RF systems, work in aerospace and defense, or just want to understand where electronics is headed, this episode delivers a clear-eyed view of an industry being born in real time.   👉 Resources from this episode:  - Connect with Gabriel: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabrielguglielmi/ - Infinite Electronics: https://www.infiniteelectronics.com/ - Infinite's Drones: https://www.l-com.com/military-drone-connectivity-solutions &  https://www.pasternack.com/pages/Featured_Products/military-drone-connectivity-solutions.html   💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from  @AltiumAcademy   Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!   👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1   Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content.   👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer!   About Altium LLC   Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products.   #Drones #UnmannedSystems #Altium

    43 min

  6. May 5

    PCB Metrology Gap: How SCAN Labs Is Automating Microsectioning

    The PCB industry has long relied on manual microsectioning to verify board quality — but as densities increase and skilled labor becomes harder to retain, that process is breaking down. In this episode of the Altium OnTrack Podcast, host Zach Peterson welcomes back Geoffrey Leeds, founder of SCAN Labs, for his third appearance on the show. Geoffrey breaks down what he calls the "metrology gap" — the widening divide between the precision measurement capabilities available to semiconductor manufacturers and those available to PCB fabricators — and explains why this gap is becoming a critical problem for high-reliability industries like defense, aerospace, medical, and automotive.   SCAN Labs is addressing this gap head-on with a heavily automated, third-party inspection and test laboratory that specializes in microsectioning for electronics verification. Geoffrey walks through the company's serialized grinding and imaging system, which can produce a fully analyzed IPC coupon roughly every six minutes, generating high-confidence metrology data at scale. The conversation also covers the role of AI and LLMs in electronics manufacturing, the limits of current non-destructive inspection methods, and Geoffrey's vision for standardizing metrology data reporting in collaboration with IPC — so that as-built data can feed directly back into design and simulation tools.   👉 Resources from this Episode: - Connect with Geoffrey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geoffrey-leeds-63389773/ - Learn more about SCAN Labs: https://www.linkedin.com/company/scan-laboratories/   💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from @AltiumAcademy. Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!   👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1   Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content.   👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer!   About Altium LLC   Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products.   #Altium #PCBManufacturing #Metrology

    51 min

  7. Apr 28

    High-Speed Interconnects for AI & Physical AI with Samtec

    What does it take to design interconnects for AI data centers pushing 112G, 224G, and even 448G? In this episode of the Altium OnTrack Podcast, host Zach Peterson sits down with Matt Burns, Director of Technical Marketing at Samtec, to unpack how connector technology has evolved to meet the demands of modern high-speed systems. From co-packaged copper and optics to near-package interconnects, Matt walks through Samtec's product families and explains why choosing your connector early in the design cycle is no longer optional at these speeds.   The conversation also explores how these same high-speed design principles are trickling down into embedded systems, where physical AI and edge computing are creating new demands for smaller, faster, denser interconnects. Matt shares insights from DesignCon, OFC, and Embedded World, painting a picture of an industry at an inflection point — one where robotics, AI accelerators, and open embedded standards are driving the next generation of connector innovation. Whether you're a PCB designer, systems architect, or just curious about what's happening at the bleeding edge of interconnect technology, this episode is packed with practical insight.   👉 Resources from this episode:  - More about Samtec: https://www.samtec.com/ - Connect with Matt: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-burns-samtec   💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from @AltiumAcademy Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!   👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1   Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content.   👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer!   About Altium LLC   Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products.   #Altium #HighSpeedDesign #PhysicalAI

    40 min

  8. Apr 21

    Altium File Parsing, AI Design Reviews & PCB Viz Tools

    What if you could parse your Altium project files from the command line, generate a full BOM in seconds, extract net lists as AI-readable JSON, and spin up a 3D HTML viewer with zero dependencies — all without ever opening Altium? In this episode of the OnTrack Podcast, host Zach Peterson sits down with Eli Hughes, principal at Wavenumber LLC, to dig into a suite of open-source tools he's built around Altium file formats. Eli walks through the Altium Cruncher toolset, including Mega Maid (a vacuum-cleaner-style data extractor), a 3D PCB visualizer, and a schematic viewer with animated net tracing — all self-contained HTML files requiring no install or cloud connection.   The conversation goes far beyond visualizers. Eli reveals how he feeds parsed net lists directly into Claude and Codex for AI-assisted design reviews, power tree analysis, and even automatic Zephyr device tree generation — completing in minutes what used to take a full day. He also lays out his vision for a next-generation PDM system: an AI-queryable knowledge store that ingests decades of schematic history, EVK reference designs from TI, Renesas, NXP, and more, and supply chain data — so engineers can stop reinventing the wheel and start building on proven, procurable circuits. If you care about PCB workflow automation, AI-assisted hardware development, or the future of design reuse, this episode is essential viewing.   👉 Resources from this Episode:  - Connect with Eli: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wavenumber/ - Learn more about Octopart Discover: https://www.altium.com/company/newsroom/press-releases/octopart-introduces-octopart-discover-part-search-solution - Check out Wavenumber LLC: https://www.wavenumber.net/   💡 Stay Connected: Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more in-depth tutorials and tips from @AltiumAcademy  Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!   👉 Subscribe for more: https://www.youtube.com/@AltiumAcademy?sub_confirmation=1   Don't forget to follow us on social to stay up-to-date on the latest Altium Academy content.   👉 Follow Altium on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@altiumdesigner 👉 Follow Altium on Twitter: https://twitter.com/altium 👉 Follow Altium on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/altium/ 👉 Follow Altium on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AltiumOfficial/   The Altium Academy is an online experience created to bring modern education to PCB Designers and Engineers all across the world. Here you can access a vast library of free training and educational content covering everything from basic design to advanced principles and step-by-step walkthroughs. Join industry legends as they share their career knowledge, review real-life design projects, or learn how to leverage one of Altium's leading design tools. No matter your level of experience, the Altium Academy can help you become a better Designer and Engineer!   About Altium LLC   Altium LLC (ASX:ALU), a global software company based in San Diego, California, is accelerating the pace of innovation through electronics. From individual inventors to multinational corporations, more PCB designers and engineers choose Altium software to design and realize electronics-based products.   #Altium #PCBDesign #OpenSourceHardware

    50 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

The PCB Design Podcast features conversations on all facets of PCB Design and Hardware Development

Information

  • Creator
    Altium LLC.
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    100
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2022. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    OnTrack: The PCB Design Podcast

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