Microsoft is shutting down The Garage, the maker spaces where employees developed experimental projects and collaborated on new apps and hardware during the company's annual hackathons. The company described the move internally as winding down The Garage program as a centralized function. Microsoft said it will keep looking for ways to help employees build skills, collaborate across teams, and apply a hacker mindset to their work.
The main Garage location was on Microsoft's Redmond, Washington, campus and anchored roughly 15 sites across the US, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. Employees used the spaces to prototype ideas, build hardware, and develop hobbies into full Microsoft products. Some Garage locations will close as soon as Friday, October 23.
The Garage produced notable products over its 17-year history. The Seeing AI app, which describes objects and text for people who are blind or have low vision, began at a 2015 hackathon. Mouse Without Borders, an app that lets a user control up to four PCs with one mouse and keyboard, was built by employee Tuong Do in his spare time. Employees also developed learning tools and accessibility features for Word, Microsoft Edge, and PowerPoint. Microsoft has taken down The Garage's hall of fame website, which listed top projects.
The Xbox Adaptive Controller is among The Garage's best-known successes. The accessibility-focused device grew out of a hackathon where employees experimented with Kinect motion-sensing technology to translate movements to an Xbox controller. An executive noticed the nearly 40-person team and moved the effort into a real product, and more than 80 employees eventually worked on it. The controller survived budget pressure and became the centerpiece of Microsoft's 2019 Super Bowl commercial.
The closure also affects Microsoft's annual employee hackathon, which an internal FAQ said the hackathon team is reimagining for today's employees, customers, and technology landscape, with more details to come. Microsoft is telling employees that the spirit of experimentation once centered in dedicated programs now shows up in daily team work. CEO Satya Nadella regularly attended Garage hackathons, where employees showcased projects to senior executives.
Employees who spoke with reporters view the closure as part of broader cutbacks at Microsoft. Earlier this year the company closed its employee library and reduced subscriptions in favor of an AI-powered learning experience. Microsoft said it is grateful to the employees, volunteers, and partners who built The Garage and expects its legacy to continue in new forms.
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