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Cursor Melbourne · Hardware Hack

Sunday 24 May · Stone & Chalk · Naarm/Melbourne

Cursor Melbourne
Hardware Hack.

Today: one Freenove kit per team. Use Cursor — and Composer 2.5 — to go from idea to working demo.

Hosted by Ethan Lee + Abhay

Cursor community · Melbourne

24 MAY 2026

Acknowledgement of Country

Naarm / Melbourne

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we meet today.

We pay our respects to Elders past and present, and extend that respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people joining us today.

Always was, always will be Aboriginal land.

Use this today

Composer 2.5 is live
in Cursor.

Pick it as your model for today's build — better at long tasks, complex instructions, and staying with you.

01

Smarter

Substantial jump in intelligence and behavior over Composer 2.

02

Stays on task

Follows complex instructions more reliably across a full afternoon build.

03

Pleasant pair

More collaborative — ideal when your teammate is wiring while you drive Cursor.

Today: Fast mode is default ($3/M in · $15/M out). Standard is $0.50/M in · $2.50/M out. Double usage included this week.

How to build with Cursor

The agentic loop
for hardware.

Cursor is not just autocomplete — it can run commands, read what came back, and help you flash the board.

01

Describe the demo

What should happen in 60 seconds? Which sensor, which output?

02

Let Cursor plan + code

Wiring diagram, firmware, and the exact flash/serial commands to run.

03

Run in the terminal

Agent runs upload/flash/monitor — or you run it; either way, keep output visible.

04

Cursor reads the output

Paste serial logs or point at the terminal — errors and stack traces become the next fix.

05

USB stays plugged in

Kit cable laptop → ESP32. With your OK, the agent can flash the device on your behalf and iterate.

Today's times

Key times.

Stone & Chalk · 10:30AM – 4:30PM — what you need on your radar.

10:30

Doors open

Grab your kit · find a table · plug in USB

11:15

Hacking starts

Build with Cursor + Composer 2.5

12:30

Pizza

Lunch ~30 min · boards can stay wired

15:00

30 min left

Wrap code · prep your demo

15:30

Demos

3 min per team + 1 min Q&A

16:20

Winners + prizes

Judging · merch · group photo ~16:30

Let's build

01 / 03

The challenge.

Describe what you want to build. Let Cursor help you make it real.

The premise

50 builders. 13 kits.
Teams of 3-4.

Minimal hardware experience needed. One kit per team — build with what we hand you on the day.

01

Team up

Find 2-3 people, pick an idea, and divide the work between wiring, firmware, and demo polish.

02

Use the kit

Each team gets one Freenove ESP32 Dev CAM Super Starter Kit. Robot arms, PCBs, and a 3D printer are here for ideas — not your unfair advantage.

03

Demo it

The only hard rule: use Cursor to code up a hardware project from scratch, then show it to the room.

Your kit

Freenove ESP32
Dev CAM Super Starter.

Dual-core 32-bit · 240 MHz · onboard camera · Wi-Fi + Bluetooth · 173 items · Python & C.

01

Board

ESP32 Dev CAM with a PCB breakout onto colour-coded breadboard power rails — fewer wiring mistakes.

02

Parts

Breadboard, jumper wires, USB A→C cable, sensors, LEDs, buzzer, motor + 9 V clip (bring a 9 V battery for motor demos).

03

Tutorial

522-page Freenove guide with 78 example projects matched to this exact hardware.

04

Languages

MicroPython (Thonny, fast iterate) or C/C++ (Arduino IDE). Your whole team picks one track.

Setup right now

Plug in. Pick a track.
Start building.

Mentors can help with CH340 or IDE issues — don't lose the afternoon to setup.

Everyone	MicroPython	C/C++
USB	Kit cable → laptop · port visible	Mac? USB-C→USB-A adapter
IDE	Thonny open · REPL + flash	Arduino IDE · ESP32 board
Cursor	Composer 2.5 · Agent mode	Terminal open for flash logs
Team	One language per kit	Motor demo? grab a 9 V battery

Stuck on drivers? Flag a mentor. Once serial works, Cursor can help flash, read output, and fix firmware in the loop.

On the floor

What's here for you.

You	Your team	Provided today
Build	Laptop · charger · USB connected	Freenove kit · 4 hardware mentors
Code	Cursor + Composer 2.5	$50 USD credits · agent can flash
Inspire	One demo idea in 60s	Robot arms · PCBs · 3D printer — look, don't snag
Fuel	Ask mentors anytime	Lunch · snacks · merch · prizes

Fair play: Your competition build uses today's kit. Extra hardware is for inspiration only.

Starter ideas

Start small.
Ship a demo.

Pick one lane — Cursor + Composer 2.5 can adapt any of these in the time you have left.

01

Camera

Motion-triggered capture, simple vision gate, or a live feed to a phone/browser.

02

Sense

Button, light, distance, or temperature → LED, buzzer, or serial alert.

03

Connect

Wi-Fi or Bluetooth dashboard: status, counter, or remote trigger from your laptop.

04

Move

Motor + 9 V battery for a physical demo — keep wiring on the breadboard PCB rails.

Judging

Two prizes today.

Prizes for best build + audience favourite. Cursor merch and credit up for grabs!

01

Best build

Judges pick the strongest working demo — clear story, built today with Cursor on the Freenove kit.

02

Audience favourite

The room votes for the demo that lands hardest — surprise, delight, or sheer audacity.

Make the room say: wait, you built that today?

Before we start

Questions?

Anything unclear about
the kit, Cursor, or today?

Kit · USB · Thonny vs Arduino · Composer 2.5 · teams · demos — ask now.

Ethan + Abhay · hardware mentors on the floor all afternoon

Go build

Let's build.

Composer 2.5 · USB plugged in · terminal open.
Describe it, flash it, read the logs, demo it. Mentors are here if you get stuck.

Ethan Lee + Abhay

Hosted by the Cursor community

Details

121 King St · Naarm/Melbourne · 10:30AM - 4:30PM

16:20 · Judging

Winners.

Best build

[Team name TBC]

Audience favourite

[Team name TBC]

Thank you Ethan Lee and Abhay for bringing today together.

Thank you Stone & Chalk for hosting us at 121 King St.