Dust off your drones. Debug your prototypes. Deploy your whimsical wonder. This is the Maker Faire that started it all 20 years ago, and the world’s greatest celebration of creativity and innovation is inviting you! This is your moment to show and tell!
Bicycles, mutant art cars, unicycles, hovercraft, human-powered or electric vehicles.
Presenters & Performance Arts
Thought leaders, fringe performers, musicians, creators, and show stoppers.
Ways to participate
Projects, presentations, performers, Hands-on Activities, and more!
Whether you’re unveiling an invention, sharing DIY tricks, or just bonding over blown capacitors, exhibiting at Maker Faire Bay Area boosts visibility, sparks connections, and feeds the creative chaos we call the maker movement. Startups, science clubs, inventors, artists—we want you.
MAKER
exhibit
Individuals, makerspaces, nonprofits, craft vendors, large art, mobile makers, etc. If you make things, fix things … Don’t overthink it. Apply here.
Calling all established companies and startups that have either surpassed $1M in annual revenue (congrats to you!) or grown to a team of three or more to exhibit.
Unleash your music, your magic, or your show-stoping spectacle on center stage. We’re also hunting for marching bands to power our daily mobile maker parade.
Share your ideas, projects, and skills through talks or live demos. Or bring together thought leaders for panel discussions that exchange expertise and inspire action.
Share your skills and get hands-on: run a workshop, activity, or field trip activation for students on Friday’s Field Trip Day. Be a leader. Be messy. Be memorable.
If applying for a booth or exhibit space, use the Maker or Sponsor & Startup Exhibit applications.
Space size varies
Full event exhibits preferred and receive priority, but weekend and Friday only options are available.
The Presentation, Performance, and Workshop applications are for scheduled appearances on a stage or in the shared workshop area. No exhibit booth space will be assigned.
Media and Bio
When applying, you are required to provide at least one primary project image to represent your exhibit, presentation, act, or workshop.
High resolution landscape images work best, at least 750px wide by 500px tall. You must have rights to the image used. Logos and images with text overlay are strongly discouraged.
Timeline
July 12th – Application deadline. Applications received after this time will be reviewed based on availability
August 1st – Applications received by July 12, 2026 will receive notification of their exhibit status by August 1, 2026 if not sooner
Thursday, September 24th – Primary set up day
Friday, September 25th through Sunday, 27th – Show time!
Exhibit Fees
There is no fee for individuals or community groups coming to Maker Faire as a “Show & Tell” exhibit.
An exhibit fee does apply to individuals, organizations, startups, and companies looking to sell or promote products or services.
Commercial Makers. A $500 commercial maker fee applies to individuals, craft vendors, and small maker companies.
Non-profit organizations may be subject to exhibit fees or asked to cover the costs of event resources.
Companies and startups are encouraged to participate as Sponsors. Startup companies can qualify for a $1500 sponsorship package. Startups consisting of more than 1 and under 10 employees, are privately funded or have startup capital of no more than $3 million, are pre-profitable, and have gross sales under $ 1 million to qualify for this sponsorship. Larger companies and organizations, please reach out to partnerships@make.co for the sponsor prospectus.
Young Makers
Students and young makers under 18 yrs wanting to exhibit at Maker Faire are welcome. Maker Faire is a three day event and a significant commitment. We encourage young makers to exhibit on Friday September 25th as part of the Field Trip Day as a single day option.
It’s a global playground for rule-breakers, tinkerers, creators, and right to repair rebels. A place where the ordinary becomes extraordinary. It’s loud, messy, and magical celebration of trying rogue ideas, showing off, and making things your own way on your own time.
Where Families Build (& break stuff)
Bring your kids. Bring your parents. Bring your project. Maker Faire is hands-on frenzy and built for anyone who likes to take things apart, put things together, and see what happens next. No barriers. No grades. Just making.
Where Projects & prototypes Find Power
From prototypes to next-level inventions, Maker Faire is where passion beats permission. It’s where you discover new ideas, meet collaborators, spark businesses, and launch careers. Most of all, it’s the place you come wondering “what if?“ and leave shouting “watch this.”
MAKERS
Entertainers
Creators
SPEAKERS
maker faire bay area
where it all began
Maker Faire started in the Bay Area in 2006 and quickly grew into a global cultural movement — a joyful celebration of creativity, curiosity, and hands-on fun.
This September 25–27, come back to the flagship where it all started. Build, play, experiment, and be part of the movement that keeps making the future.
Every community has its makers. From international festivals to hometown gatherings, we celebrate them all.
bay area, rome, lille, hannover, shenzhen
Global Faires
Step into something bigger. In major cities around the globe, our global faires gather thousands of exhibitors and performers, jaw-dropping builds, and spotlight startups and sponsors. A bucket list item for all.
A city’s Maker community, turned up to full volume. Hundreds of exhibitors, interactive zones, live talks, and a stage that lifts up expert makers and thought leaders alongside a few legendary guests.
Like a farmers’ market for creativity. Local organizers bring together the makers, crafters, and gadget-builders from your own neighborhood for a day of showing off, sharing skills, and hanging out.
The science fair, unhinged (in the best way). Same school spirit. Same student spotlight. But now the displays move, blink, and sometimes fall over and that’s OK. It’s hands-on and way more fun than its predecessor.
Maker Faire celebrates the entire creative continuum—from cultural crafts to cutting-edge technology, backyard tinkering to class-act innovation—offering an unparalleled diversity of content that inspires every age, interest, and skill level.
tech & electronics
Robotics (humanoid, drones, rovers), Arduino/Raspberry Pi projects, physical AI, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, retro computing, circuit bending, DIY electronics kits, wearable tech, and interactive installations.
Science & engineering
Amateur rocketry, physics demonstrations (Tesla coils, plasma globes), alternative energy projects, Rube Goldberg machines, geology/astronomy displays, and biology/bio-hacking projects (like mushroom cultivation or DNA extraction).
Craft & Artisans
Metalworking, woodworking, ceramics, glassblowing, leatherworking, textile arts (knitting, weaving, embroidery), papercraft, cosplay and prop-making, upcycled fashion, and fine art created with maker tools (laser cutters, CNC routers).
3D & Digital FAB
3D printing and scanning demonstrations, CNC milling machines, laser cutting/engraving, vinyl cutting, computer-aided design (CAD) workshops, and showcases of complex, impossible-to-make-by-hand objects.
Sustainable Living
Urban farming, aquaponics/hydroponics, beekeeping, home brewing/fermentation, composting systems, off-grid energy solutions, repair cafes (fixing appliances/bikes), natural building techniques, and zero-waste projects.
Live & interactive art
Kinetic sculptures (especially large, fiery, or moving ones), interactive light and sound installations, musical instruments made from unusual objects, magic and puppet shows, thought-provoking presentations, street performance, and collaborative community art projects.
Did you know?
The story of Maker Faire begins not in an exhibition hall, but in the pages of a magazine. In 2005, Dale Dougherty launched Make: magazine as a quarterly publication, envisioning it as a guide for a new generation of hands-on enthusiasts he would come to call “makers”. As the editorial team profiled fascinating individuals, from rocket hobbyists to kinetic sculptors and DIY mavericks they realized that their vibrant, eclectic energy they were capturing in print could be even more compelling in person. This led to the inaugural Maker Faire in 2006.
It’s a global playground for rule-breakers, tinkerers, creators, and right to repair rebels. A place where the ordinary becomes extraordinary. It’s loud, messy, magical celebration of trying rogue ideas, showing off, and making things your own way on your own time.
Where Families Build (and break stuff)
Bring your kids. Bring your parents. Bring your project. Maker Faire is hands-on frenzy and built for anyone who likes to take things apart, put things together, and see what happens next. No barriers. No grades. Just making.
Where Projects and prototypes Find Power
From prototypes to next-level inventions, Maker Faire is where passion beats permission. It’s where you discover new ideas, meet collaborators, spark businesses, and launch careers. Most of all, it’s the place you come wondering “what if?“ and leave shouting “watch this.”
MAKERS
Entertainers
Creators
SPEAKERS
maker faire bay area
where it all began
Maker Faire started in the Bay Area in 2006 and quickly grew into a global cultural movement — a joyful celebration of creativity, curiosity, and hands-on fun.
This September 25–27, come back to the flagship where it all started. Build, play, experiment, and be part of the movement that keeps making the future.
Every community has its makers. From international festivals to hometown gatherings, we celebrate them all.
Years of Festivities
0
Countries
10
Participating Makers
0
Attendees Worldwide
1000
bay area, rome, lille, hannover, shenzhen
Global Faires
Step into something bigger. In major cities around the globe, our global faires gather thousands of exhibitors and performers, jaw-dropping builds, and spotlight startups and sponsors. A bucket list item for all.
A city’s Maker community, turned up to full volume. Hundreds of exhibitors, interactive zones, live talks, and a stage that lifts up expert makers and thought leaders alongside a few legendary guests.
Like a farmers’ market for creativity. Local organizers bring together the makers, crafters, and gadget-builders from your own neighborhood for a day of showing off, sharing skills, and hanging out.
The science fair, unhinged (in the best way). Same school spirit. Same student spotlight. But now the displays move, blink, and sometimes fall over and that’s OK. It’s hands-on and way more fun than its predecessor.
Maker Faire celebrates the entire creative continuum—from cultural crafts to cutting-edge technology, backyard tinkering to class-act innovation—offering an unparalleled diversity of content that inspires every age, interest, and skill level.
tech & electronics
Robotics (humanoid, drones, rovers), Arduino/Raspberry Pi projects, home automation, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, retro computing, circuit bending, DIY electronics kits, wearable tech, and interactive installations.
Science & engineering
Amateur rocketry, physics demonstrations (Tesla coils, plasma globes), alternative energy projects, Rube Goldberg machines, geology/astronomy displays, and biology/bio-hacking projects (like mushroom cultivation or DNA extraction).
Craft & Artisans
Metalworking, woodworking, ceramics, glassblowing, leatherworking, textile arts (knitting, weaving, embroidery), papercraft, cosplay and prop-making, upcycled fashion, and fine art created with maker tools (laser cutters, CNC routers).
3D & Digital FAB
3D printing and scanning demonstrations, CNC milling machines, laser cutting/engraving, vinyl cutting, computer-aided design (CAD) workshops, and showcases of complex, impossible-to-make-by-hand objects.
Sustainable Living
Urban farming, aquaponics/hydroponics, beekeeping, home brewing/fermentation, composting systems, off-grid energy solutions, repair cafes (fixing appliances/bikes), natural building techniques, and zero-waste projects.
Live & interactive art
Kinetic sculptures (especially large, fiery, or moving ones), interactive light and sound installations, musical instruments made from unusual objects, magic and puppet shows, thought-provoking presentations, street performance, and collaborative community art projects.
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