Repair is Hardware: Building a Future We Can Fix
Long talk
Time
June 20, 2025 4:00-4:50 PM
Location
Talk Track One
When hardware breaks, repair is the first line of defense—but most products today are designed to fail fast and stay broken. In this talk, Kyle Wiens (CEO, iFixit) and Matt Zieminski (VP of Partnerships, iFixit and The Repair Association) will show why repairability isn’t just a consumer right—it’s the ultimate hardware design challenge.
We’ll pull back the curtain with real-world war stories:
- How tiny design choices at the PCB and housing level decide whether a product lives, dies, or ends up in a landfill.
- Companies that nailed it—and companies that built themselves a reputation for failure.
- How tools, materials, and firmware can either unlock DIY repair or lock users out forever.
We’ll also connect it to the bigger shifts rattling the hardware world:
- How new Right to Repair laws are forcing design revolutions from the ground up.
- Why smart manufacturers are already rethinking their BOMs, prototypes, and production runs.
- How builders, hackers, and engineers can flip the script—and lead a movement for tech built to survive.
This session is a call to arms (and screwdrivers): real tactics, hard-earned lessons, and a roadmap for designing tech that doesn’t just work—it fights back.