More web-surf nonsense. My uncle invented surgical lasers, my wife used them, and the company shop where I worked had a sign company within a sublet space that etched with lasers. I've seen lasers cut structural steel. None of that is related to mat cutting where you need a clean beveled edge. That's done with a knife or blade specially designed for automation. Try looking up relevant equipment that people in the picture framing trade actually use. If you Google "Computerized mat cutters"
you'll see plenty of examples. The framing trade has its own forums, publications, workshops, etc. A few years ago I sold
equipment to an outfit commissioned to make a big million dollar photo composed entirely of different shades of hardwood
plywood. They scanned and color-mapped the original color film portrait, then used a laser to lightly etch or burn the cut marks into all the respective types of wood (22 varieties, as I recall). This created a pattern just like a jigsaw puzzle. And, in
fact, specialized jigsaws had to be used to actually cut out every single piece - tens of thousands of them. It took four months.
Any deeper into the surface, and the laser would have either started a fire or at least have hopelessly discolored those small
pieces. Not just any material will work. And this particular mapping laser was something vastly beyond the budget of any
frame shop. CMC machines (computerized matcutters, indeed with software analogous to CNC) start at the low end used
for around 8K, and run to around 24K for better new machines.