The object
Massimo Banzi co-designed the original Arduino open-source microcontroller board, built to let non-specialists connect code to sensors, motors and lights. The inexpensive manufactured board became a defining tool of the maker movement and a widely adopted foundation for embedded-hardware learning and rapid prototyping.
What Massimo did
Co-designed the original Arduino board and platform with the Ivrea team to make physical-computing prototypes accessible to design students.
Why it matters
Arduino's open hardware has become a global physical-computing standard, and its official history identifies the founders' work as the platform that enabled a large maker community.
Living-status check
Arduino's September 2025 current founder profile identifies Banzi as co-founder and active university teacher, positive evidence he was alive in 2025.