MIT student's modular keyboard lets you add keys like Lego bricks

An MIT student has built an open source keyboard whose keys snap together magnetically, letting users decide how many keys they want and where those keys sit. Nathan Alspaugh calls the project Keybytes, and it was reported by TechRadar.

The design splits a keyboard into two parts. A central controller, named Keyword, manages the setup, while separate key modules called Keybits attach to it and to each other through magnets. Because each key connects on its own, builders are not locked into a conventional layout.

Every Keybit measures 19.05 by 19.05mm, matching the standard 1U key size. Inside each one sits a RISC-V microcontroller, so a key does its own processing instead of depending on a single shared chip. Pogo pins on all four sides of a module carry power and I2C data, which means keys can be joined along different edges to suit unusual arrangements.

The Keyword controller is built from two circuit boards stacked together. The top board carries an Arm Cortex-M4 chip, flash storage and a Bluetooth antenna. The bottom board handles USB-C, battery charging and a buck-boost converter that regulates power.

Each Keybit takes a Cherry MX mechanical switch, so builders can pick whichever compatible switch they prefer for typing feel.

Cost is a significant factor. Alspaugh estimated that a full-size build with roughly two Keyword controllers and 110 Keybits would come to about $900. That total reflects the electronics inside every key, since each module needs its own board and chip. Builders would also pay for circuit board production, components, soldering work and 3D-printed cases, which could make large layouts far more expensive than small ones built around a few shortcuts.

Keybytes is still at an early stage. Alspaugh has said the basic system only recently began working, and the public documentation shows a limited set of module combinations rather than a finished full-size board. Lighting is also limited, with a status indicator on the Keyword but no dedicated illumination on individual Keybits.

Alspaugh released the design files, assets and build instructions on GitHub under the MIT licence, a permissive terms set that lets others study the hardware, assemble their own and change it. Possible future additions such as RGB lighting, rotary dials, fingerprint sensors or a touchpad have been raised as ideas, not confirmed features.