Microsoft Closes Employee Maker Space and Global Hackathon Program
WHO:
The Verge - Microsoft’s FAQ thanked the employees, volunteers, and partners who helped build The Garage and said the company would continue its legacy “in new forms.”
GeekWire - The Garage’s co-founder Quinn Hawkins described four choices behind the program’s longevity, including supporting people who built projects rather than voting on ideas, and having business groups pay for their own events.
GeekWire - Microsoft is winding down The Garage, its employee program for side projects; the article describes a 17-year run.
The Verge - Microsoft said in an internal FAQ: “We’re winding down The Garage program as a centralized function.”
The Verge - Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella regularly attended Garage hackathons, where employees showcased projects to senior executives.
The Verge - Microsoft employee Tuong Do developed Mouse Without Borders in his spare time.
The Verge - Microsoft employees across Xbox and Surface contributed to the Xbox Adaptive Controller; more than 80 employees eventually helped bring it to life.
WHAT:
The Verge - An executive saw a nearly 40-person team working on the Xbox Adaptive Controller project, helped turn it into a real product, and more than 80 employees eventually contributed to it.
The Verge - The Garage offered expert advisers, hands-on workshops, and internship programs, in addition to maker spaces.
GeekWire - Microsoft is closing The Garage, which gave employees around the world space and tools for side projects and ran the company’s Global Hackathon.
The Verge - The Garage’s locations are being wound down. The closure will also bring changes to Microsoft’s annual employee hackathon, which could potentially disappear.
The Verge - Seeing AI, an app that describes objects and text for people who are blind or have low vision, originated at a hackathon. Mouse Without Borders lets users control up to four PCs with one mouse and keyboard and remains available.
The Verge - Garage projects also included learning tools and accessibility features for Word, Microsoft Edge, and PowerPoint.
The Verge - The Xbox Adaptive Controller originated at a hackathon as employees explored a gaming device using Kinect motion-sensing technology to track movements and translate them to an Xbox controller. The controller later appeared in Microsoft’s Super Bowl commercial.
The Verge - Microsoft said: “We will continue to explore new ways to help employees build skills, collaborate across boundaries, and bring a hacker mindset to their work.” It also said the hackathon team was “reimagining the program” and would share more later.
The Verge - Microsoft removed The Garage’s hall-of-fame website. The company had also closed its employee library and reduced subscriptions in favor of an “AI-powered learning experience.”
WHERE:
The Verge - The main Garage space was on Microsoft’s Redmond, Washington, campus and served as the hub for around 15 locations across the US, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.
WHEN:
The Verge - Microsoft said some Garage spaces would close “as soon as tomorrow, Friday, October 23rd.”
The Verge - Seeing AI originated at a 2015 hackathon and shipped 10 years later.
The Verge - Microsoft closed its employee library earlier in the year.
WHY:
The Verge - The internal FAQ said The Garage’s legacy would continue “in new forms.”
GeekWire - Quinn Hawkins credited the Garage’s endurance to its approach to backing builders and having business groups fund their own events.
The Verge - Microsoft said experimentation that once took place mainly in dedicated programs is now reflected in how teams work every day.
The Verge - Microsoft said it was reimagining the hackathon to meet employees’, customers’, and technology’s current needs.
(UPDATED October 23, 2026 21:15 UTC)
Microsoft is winding down The Garage, its 17-year employee program for side projects, and closing its dedicated spaces, including the main hub in Redmond, Washington. The program supported employees around the world with maker spaces, workshops, expert advisers, internships, and a companywide hackathon. Its projects included Mouse Without Borders, which lets people control multiple PCs with one keyboard and mouse, and Seeing AI, an app that describes objects and text for people with low vision. The Xbox Adaptive Controller also grew from a hackathon idea, eventually drawing contributions from more than 80 employees. Microsoft says experimentation is now part of everyday work and that it is reimagining the hackathon to fit current needs. The company says The Garage’s legacy will continue in new forms, but the annual event’s future remains unclear. Co-founder Quinn Hawkins credited the program’s longevity to backing builders and having business groups fund their own events.
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(UPDATED October 23, 2026 10:08 UTC)
Microsoft is winding down The Garage, its 17-year employee program for side projects, and closing its dedicated spaces. The hub on the company’s Redmond, Washington, campus supported about 15 locations worldwide and provided tools for experimentation. Microsoft says innovation once fostered through special programs is now part of teams’ everyday work. The Garage also ran the company’s annual hackathon, which Microsoft says it is reimagining, with more details to come. The program produced projects including Seeing AI, which describes objects and text for people who are blind or have low vision, and Mouse Without Borders, which lets users control several PCs with one keyboard and mouse. Hackathon work also led to the Xbox Adaptive Controller, developed with contributions from more than 80 employees. CEO Satya Nadella regularly attended the events. Microsoft says it will continue finding ways for employees to build skills and collaborate.