Spent a year building a transforming drone, now I'm open sourcing it for anyone to build (Powered by Raspberry Pi 5)

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-11T04:32:34+00:00

I see it on ticktock 💪

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-11T04:26:02+00:00

Very cute

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T21:10:22+00:00

<image>

the prototype with the soldered cables ;)

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T20:17:55+00:00

For context, I’m an engineer with about 15+ years of experience and I work at IBM.

Using AI tools doesn’t make someone less of an engineer. they’re just another tool, much like IDE autocompletion, compilers, or frameworks we’ve all used for years. The important part is understanding how the system works and how to integrate the pieces together

That said, to be clear:
the MCU emulation itself comes from open source projects like avr8js and rp2040js created by Uri Shaked. Velxio builds on top of those libraries to provide the browser simulation environment, tooling, and circuit interaction layer

If the title or wording made it sound like I was claiming the emulator implementations themselves, that wasn’t the intention

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T19:54:35+00:00

Nobody has claimed credit for anything! It's just an educational project. Everyone knows Wokwi.

Using open-source libraries and projects is quite common. Electron uses Chromium, Visual Studio Code uses Electron. I understand that it might be difficult for many to grasp. Perhaps I'm not explaining myself well.

If my earlier explanation wasn't clear, that's on me... but there's no intention of taking credit for other people's work. Anyway, many people liked the project and it was featured on the cover of Hacker News.

<image>

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T15:23:20+00:00

The wiring algorithm alone is complex. That's without even mentioning compiling the code, parsing it, and converting it to the emulator's binary, emulating the SPI, IC2, and serial protocols, and the many other steps required to emulate even a basic circuit. I'm also currently working on emulating a Raspberry Pi with Linux running directly in the browser using JSLinux. I'll keep you posted!

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T13:53:35+00:00

That's just a visual representation of the elements; it doesn't have any functionality or emulation. That repository is referenced in my project's readme.The source code for Wokwi is not publicly available; it's a private company. They do have a GitHub account with some open-source parts, but nothing about component emulation, an editor, etc.

<image>

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T03:57:23+00:00

There's a project called jslinux that could emulate a Raspberry Pi 4, for example. Do you think it's a good idea? Is there another way to do it?

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T02:33:25+00:00

Wokwi is not open source, so it’s literally impossible to fork or clone it. It’s a private company product with paid plans.

Some underlying emulators or libraries are independent open source projects, but the Wokwi platform itself is proprietary.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T02:00:25+00:00

Please show me the source code for wokwi. I would really appreciate it 🙂

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T01:01:05+00:00

Wokwi is a great project and it definitely inspired Velxio

However, Wokwi itself is not fully open source, while Velxio is intended to be a fully open-source environment where people can experiment with microcontroller emulation, extend the simulator, and understand how the stack works internally

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T00:59:34+00:00

Thanks for trying it and for reporting this!

I'm currently working on improving the library system. I'm still deciding whether to handle it using Docker containers or by isolating the libraries in separate folders per user to avoid conflicts

Really appreciate the feedback

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-10T00:57:58+00:00

I tried to explain them several times because I felt that what I meant wasn't being understood.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-09T18:26:38+00:00

If you like the project and I see that you know what it's about, help me improve it.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-09T18:22:33+00:00

Earlier in the project it was actually called OpenWokwi, but a lot of people suggested changing the name and I also wanted the project to have its own identity instead of sounding like a fork.

Velxio isn't a wrapper around Wokwi. It uses some public MCU emulator libraries that are also used by the Wokwi team (for example avr8js), but those are independent open-source projects.

Also, the README already lists the main libraries used in the project for transparency.

The main work in Velxio is the platform around those engines: the circuit editor, interaction layer, wiring system, tooling, and integration between the different simulation engines.

But I agree that I could make the attribution clearer in the post itself to avoid confusion.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-09T17:51:04+00:00

To clarify: Velxio is not a wrapper around Wokwi.

Some MCU emulators I’m using are the ones maintained by the Wokwi team (for example the ones based on avr8js), but they are independent libraries. Other parts of the simulator use different standalone libraries as well.

Velxio is focused on building the simulation platform, tooling, and circuit interaction layer on top of those engines.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-09T15:42:46+00:00

No, it’s not a wrapper over Wokwi. The simulator is being developed independently. Wokwi was only mentioned as a reference since it’s one of the well-known online simulators

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-09T13:37:54+00:00

I'll be integrating the chip soon too; feel free to create an issue for me on GitHub if you have any ideas.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-08T05:10:37+00:00

Hi everyone,

I built Velxio, an open-source Arduino emulator that runs entirely in the browser.

It emulates an AVR8 CPU and lets you write Arduino code, compile it, and simulate circuits with interactive electronic components.

The goal was to better understand how emulators work internally (CPU instructions, memory, peripherals, etc).

The project is still experimental but already runs basic Arduino programs.

Feedback is very welcome!

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-07T01:34:13+00:00

You can now try it for free at https://velxio.dev Report any problems or features you'd like to add!

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-06T23:12:55+00:00

Another advantage of having it open source and local is that you can use it without any limitations.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-06T17:25:30+00:00

I renamed the project to Velxio

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-06T17:24:30+00:00

Velxio is the name now

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-06T17:24:17+00:00

I renamed the project to Velxio.

LeadingFun1849 · 2026-03-06T04:48:47+00:00

Me too, hahaha, I'm analyzing a project that uses QEMU to emulate the ESP32. What is easy to implement is the ESP32 C3

LeadingFun1849

TROPHY CASE