The week on the bench · Monday to Sunday, UTC
Week 33, 2026 · 10 to 16 August
7 entries published: 1 tool, 4 builds, 2 news. This page lists what was published; it is not a newsletter issue.
The week as a scope trace
One channel per kind, one pulse per entry at the hour it was published. Taller pulses have more points.
Build of the week · BB-0159
OpenMicroKbd: an agent-written CoHDL schematic becomes a working Codex Micro-style macropad
Tony Huang built OpenMicroKbd, an open recreation of OpenAI's Codex Micro macropad on an STM32F072, whose schematic an AI agent wrote in CoHDL. Quilter.ai did the layout, an agent helped with the Rust firmware, and Huang had the boards fabbed and finished the assembly by hand. The launch post has photos of the assembled board and printed case.
Tools1
All tools2 mo ago
OnlyClaws ESP: an agent deploys Lua apps over HTTP to a once-flashed ESP32-S3
OnlyClaws ESP is ESP32 firmware that an agent programs over HTTP with Lua scripts after a single flash. The scripts draw on the panel, play audio, read sensors and report events; a classic-ESP32 build drives a Waveshare RoArm-M2 arm. The README's demo GIF and video show apps on an ESP32-S3 board; the three-app hero image is simulated.
Shown working
Builds4
All builds2 mo ago
co-arm: a 3D-printed four-joint camera arm that Codex can see through and move
co-arm is a 3D-printed four-joint camera arm built from ST3215 serial-bus servos, an ESP32 servo HAT and a Raspberry Pi 4. Codex previews each move before running it, then reads the joints and camera to check the result. The author says Codex has moved the physical arm; demo media is not published yet. The software is source-available for noncommercial use.
Claimed2 mo ago
VibePulse: an ESP32-S3 desk screen that shows agent activity and answers prompts with a tap
Niclas Vestlund's VibePulse shows Claude Code and Codex usage and agent activity on a Waveshare ESP32-S3 AMOLED panel. A full-screen alert appears when an agent waits for input, and a tap answers supported prompts. A Python service runs on macOS or Windows; cloud relays are off by default. The README links a YouTube Short of the panels on his desk.
Shown working2 mo ago
Claude Code designs a replacement shelf hook in OpenSCAD and checks its own renders before printing
Wataru Takasato had Claude Code write OpenSCAD from caliper measurements, render PNG previews and check them before each print on a Bambu Lab A1 mini. A tolerance plate showed holes printing about 0.2 mm small in PETG. The replacement bag hook for his shelf still needed its screw holes drilled; Takasato thinks printing it on its side changed their clearance.
Shown working2 mo ago
OpenMicroKbd: an agent-written CoHDL schematic becomes a working Codex Micro-style macropad
Tony Huang built OpenMicroKbd, an open recreation of OpenAI's Codex Micro macropad on an STM32F072, whose schematic an AI agent wrote in CoHDL. Quilter.ai did the layout, an agent helped with the Rust firmware, and Huang had the boards fabbed and finished the assembly by hand. The launch post has photos of the assembled board and printed case.
Shown working
News2
All news2 mo ago
Veecle surveys chip vendors' MCP servers: docs, builds and debug, but no virtual target
Daniel Frassinelli of Veecle reviewed first-party hardware MCP servers and found that seven chip and tooling vendors shipped them between October 2025 and August 2026. He found no official server from ST, Infineon or Renesas. He writes that none of the vendor servers runs firmware without a physical board; Veecle's own product, Chiplab, targets that gap.
Claimed2 mo ago
Arduino App Lab 0.10 adds Agentic Mode for the UNO Q
Arduino released App Lab 0.10 with Agentic Mode, which connects a bring-your-own-key model to an UNO Q project through MCP and the App CLI. Claude is the first supported provider. The agent can create and edit files, run and stop the App and read errors as they happen. The post does not show it reaching the board's pins directly.
Claimed
