The Maker Faire

The Maker Faire is one of the largest "do-it-yourself" gatherings in the world. The annual event took place last weekend at the San Mateo Fairgrounds, with about 1000 exhibitors and over 100,000 attendees. The event has grown explosively in the seven years since its founding, and is now in several other cities as well. I went with my camera crew to record material for an upcoming episode of Future Talk and was not disappointed. From homebuilt helicopters and submarines to robotic kits used for making your own robots at home, to 3-D printers and soldering classes for kids, there were ingenious devices and eye popping art and sculpture as far as the eye could see. It's all part of the Maker movement (which some prefer to call the Maker subculture), which also includes a flagship publication, Make Magazine. The goal is to encourage people to master technology, learn from each other, and "do-it-themselves". It wouldn't surprise me if some really useful inventions were to come from the people who exhibited at the Faire.