Key takeaways
- AutoCAD shows no storage total, so you measure the folders that hold your drawings on file servers, shared drives and in Autodesk Docs, and report the size in GB.
- You export by copying whole project folders with their structure intact, or by downloading them from the Files tool in Autodesk Docs with download permission.
- Drawings often reference other drawings and images, so copying single files can leave them with broken links; whole project folders keep each drawing complete.
- You don't need to export anything to apply: have your total size in GB, years of history and subscription count ready, and the data vendor anonymizes the records before any AI lab sees them.
01
What is AutoCAD data, and why do AI labs and data vendors buy it?
The short answer
AutoCAD data is the set of technical drawings a company has made in AutoCAD, saved as DWG files, together with the files those drawings depend on. AI labs (companies that build and train AI models) and data vendors (companies that anonymize business records and package them for those labs) buy a copy because drawings record how real buildings, parts and sites were designed, with every revision tied to an actual project.
What AutoCAD files record
AutoCAD is Autodesk's software for drawing precise plans of buildings, machine parts, roads and other things that get built. It has no database of its own: each drawing is a file that the team saves wherever it keeps its project files.
- DWG and DXF
- The file formats AutoCAD uses for drawings. DWG is its native format, and DXF is a format for exchanging drawings with other software.
- Layers
- Named groups of drawn objects, such as walls, plumbing or electrical, that can be shown or hidden.
- Blocks and dimensions
- Blocks are reusable drawn parts, such as a door symbol, and dimensions are the measurements written onto the drawing.
- External references
- Links from one drawing to another drawing or image, so that a site plan can display the floor plan beneath it.
- Sheet sets
- Collections of drawing sheets that are issued together as one project package.
Why drawings teach an AI model something
An AI model learns by studying a very large number of examples and finding the patterns in them, and those examples are called training data. Pictures of finished buildings cannot show how a design was built up. A set of drawings kept in its project folder shows a design moving from early layouts to issued sheets, with the layers, dimensions and revisions that real engineers and architects chose.
AI labs now want to train AI agents, software that carries out a job step by step, and technical drawing is one of the jobs they target. A data vendor can turn anonymized drawing sets into worked examples that an agent studies like an answer key. The mechanism is explained in AI training data: why AI companies want your company's data.
How AutoCAD fits into a dataset
Drawings are one of several kinds of record in a company's dataset, which usually also includes documents, email and project files. Companies are paid $100K to $2M or more per dataset, according to micro1, the data vendor we typically refer companies to. The price covers the whole dataset, not each app on its own, and what your data is worth explains what moves it.
02
Where does AutoCAD show how much data you have?
The short answer
AutoCAD has no central storage meter, because it saves each drawing as a file wherever your team keeps it. You measure the folders that hold your drawings, on file servers, shared drives or in Autodesk Docs, and report the total in GB. You need read access to every folder you measure.
How to measure your drawings
Because the drawings sit in several places, the first job is to list them. The steps below then size each place.
- Make a list of every location that holds drawings, whether a file server, a shared network drive, a cloud drive or an Autodesk Docs project.
- On a file server or shared drive, open the properties of the top-level drawings folder to read its total size. To size drawings alone, search the folder for .dwg files and add up the results.
- For Autodesk Docs, go into each project, open its Files tool and look through the project folders. Folders there can be nested up to 25 levels.
Autodesk now documents Docs under the name Autodesk Forma Data Management. Its help pages for the Files tool and for organizing files with folders describe the same file and folder tools.
What you need in order to measure
| Where the drawings are | How to size them | Access needed |
|---|---|---|
| File server or shared drive | Folder properties, or a search for .dwg files | Read access to every drawings folder |
| Cloud drive | The folder's size in that drive | Read access to the folders |
| Autodesk Docs | The Files tool in each project | Manage permission on a folder controls who can view, download, upload or edit its files |
Why the number depends on what you count
A drawings folder often also holds PDFs, images and spreadsheets that are not drawings. The folder properties count everything inside, while a search for .dwg files counts drawings alone, so decide which one you are reporting and say so.
03
What should you know about your AutoCAD data before you apply?
The short answer
Have three facts ready: the total size of your drawing folders in GB, how many years of drawings you hold and how many AutoCAD subscriptions you have. They go into the data manifest, the written summary of which apps hold your records, how many years each covers and roughly how much. Applying shares no data, and you don't need to run an export first.
The size in GB
Report the total size of your drawing folders, including DWG and DXF files, external references and sheet sets. Say whether the PDFs and images stored beside them are counted.
The years of history
The oldest modified date among your DWG files tells you how far back the drawings go. If old drawings were copied to a new server, the modified date still shows when each was last changed, which is the safer guide.
The number of seats
Count the AutoCAD subscriptions that are assigned to people at your company.
What you don't need to do first
You don't need to export anything to apply, and you don't need to tidy the folders. The data vendor anonymizes the records before anyone else sees them, and nothing moves until a lawyer-reviewed license is signed. The application, the intro call and each later step are laid out in how to sell your company's data.
04
How do you export your AutoCAD drawings?
The short answer
AutoCAD has no export button, because the drawings are ordinary files: copy each drawings folder from the file server onto an external drive, or compress it into a ZIP archive, without changing its internal layout. In Autodesk Docs, an account with download permission on every folder pulls the project folders from the Files tool. Take whole project folders, not single files.
Who can export
On a file server, the person copying needs read access to all drawings folders. Autodesk Docs works differently: members with Manage permission on a folder control who may view, download, upload or edit its files, so sign in with an account that can download from every folder you are exporting.
The steps on file servers and shared drives
- Find every drawings folder you listed when you measured.
- Copy each folder onto an external drive, or compress it into a ZIP archive.
- Do not rearrange anything inside the folders, so that external references still find their files.
The steps in Autodesk Docs
- Open the project and go to its Files tool.
- Download each project folder while signed in to an account that holds download permission on all of them.
Autodesk's article on file and folder limits says one file in Autodesk Docs should stay under 5 TB and that folders have no explicit storage cap.
Why whole folders matter
Drawings often reference other drawings and images, so exporting single files can leave a drawing with broken links. The diagram below shows the same project copied both ways.
What counts as the drawing set
The set includes the DWG and DXF files, the external references and the sheet sets. PDFs and images kept beside the drawings may be part of the folder as well, and it is worth agreeing with the data vendor on whether they are in scope.
How long an export takes
Autodesk gives no estimate, and the time depends on how large the folders are and how fast the server or connection is. Copying a very large archive to an external drive is the part that usually takes the longest.
Sources: Autodesk, Autodesk article on file and folder limits when uploading, Files (Data Management Help) and Organize Files with Folders (Data Management Help). Steps checked against these pages in November 2026.
05
What stays private when AutoCAD data is licensed?
The short answer
The company decides which project folders are in scope, and the data vendor replaces names and other personal details with consistent stand-ins before an AI lab sees anything. The company keeps ownership of its drawings, and the license covers defined files for a defined use.
You choose what is in scope
A company can leave out the drawings of clients that did not agree to sharing, or of sensitive sites. The data vendor also deletes records that are too sensitive to clean safely instead of anonymizing them.
Names are replaced before a lab sees them
Anonymization means replacing every detail that identifies a person, a company or a place, such as a name or a street address, with a stand-in that is the same every time it appears. Drawings carry such details in title blocks, revision notes and text labels. The geometry and the structure of the layers are untouched, so the drawing still teaches the same design. The diagram shows one title block before and after.
The method, including what is deleted outright and how you review samples, is in how company data is anonymized for AI training.
Ownership and payment
Licensing gives the buyer limited rights to a copy, while the company keeps ownership of the originals. Exclusivity, permitted use and deletion are covered in data licensing. micro1 pays in full within 30 days of accepting the data, usually as a single payment.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can AutoCAD tell us the total size of our drawings?
No, it has no meter. Each drawing is a file in whatever location your team picked, which means you size the folders themselves, on servers or in Autodesk Docs.
How big can a file in Autodesk Docs be?
One file should stay under 5 TB, according to Autodesk, and folders have no explicit capacity limit.
Is Autodesk Docs now called Autodesk Forma?
In Autodesk's help center, yes: the Files tool of Docs is now described under the heading Autodesk Forma Data Management, with a FAQ about the name changes. The file and folder tools on this page are unchanged.
Should we export single drawings or whole project folders?
Whole project folders. Drawings reference other drawings and images, and copying a folder with its structure intact keeps those references working.
Do we need to export our AutoCAD files before we apply?
No. The application takes about two minutes and shares no data. For the intro call you need your total drawing size in GB, your years of history and your subscription count. The full copy is needed later, when the records are transferred after you sign the license.
Can we license only some of our drawings?
Yes. The company chooses the project folders in scope, so drawings for clients that did not agree to sharing, or for sensitive sites, can stay out.
What is AutoCAD data worth to AI labs and data vendors?
Drawings are priced as part of a whole dataset, not on their own. Companies are paid $100K to $2M or more per dataset, according to micro1, and the price depends on the years of history and how completely the records show each job. What your data is worth explains the factors.
Bottom line
Know what is in AutoCAD, then see what it is worth
You don't need to export anything to apply. Apply in two minutes, describe your records on the intro call, and micro1, the data vendor we typically refer companies to, prices the whole dataset and sends an offer 1–2 days later.
Not legal, tax or financial advice. Figures come from micro1's published pages and public reporting as of November 2026.