o1 bridge
Sydney, it’s time to get building.
o1lab is launching its first ever competition: o1 Bridge. A week-long hardware challenge about building bridges in every sense, in collaboration with Arrayah. A bridge between AI and the physical world. A bridge between software and hardware. A bridge across the gap that stops curious people from making real things: access to tools, space, components, technical support, and people to build alongside. This competition is not just about the thing you make. It is about collapsing the distance between an idea in your head and something real in your hands.
The full challenge brief will be released live at the kickoff event on May 17. To keep the competition fair, participants will not receive the exact build prompt beforehand -> but expect to work with microcontrollers, embedded devices, sensors, Raspberry Pis, physical interfaces, and the messy, exciting space between software and reality.
The challenge is designed to be achievable in a day, but participants will have a full week to prototype, test, refine, and polish their build.
Think: devices that sense, observe, trigger, count, notify, move, or respond. Something useful. Something real. Something that connects digital intelligence to the world around it.
There will be a brand new Bambu Lab P1S 3D printer up for grabs for the winner, plus a collection of microcontrollers, electronics kits, and hardware prizes across other categories.
This event is not just for engineers. It is for anyone curious about making physical things.
Artists, designers, founders, students, tinkerers, musicians, and complete beginners are all welcome. If you are non-technical, we will have support available to help you shape an idea, design a build, and work through the technical parts.
Given space restrictions, the event will be capped at 30 participants, so register early for a chance to take part.
Key details
The challenge will run from May 17 to May 24, with two mandatory in-person events:
Kickoff and brief release: May 17, 11:00am
We’ll reveal the challenge brief, explain the rules, share available components, and help people get started.
Final presentations and mixer: May 24, 3:00pm
Participants will demo what they built, share what worked, what broke, and what they learned.
During the week you will be able to access the lab, it's equipment and collection of components. A full list of items are available at o1lab.xyz
This event is being run in collaboration with Arrayah, a collection of spaces to enable people to just do things.