A conference name badge usually tells people who you are. At WorkOS’s init() conference in San Francisco, developers turned theirs into a game console, a virtual pet, a flight tracker and even a voice assistant.

The star was a tiny round computer powered by an ESP32-S3 processor. WorkOS distributed roughly 500 programmable badges at its October 7 event. By October 9, the company was sharing videos of what attendees had built—including Doom running on the badge’s circular screen.

More than a name tag

Each badge is an M5Stack StopWatch development board with a 1.75-inch AMOLED touchscreen, two buttons, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a microphone, speaker, motion sensor and rechargeable battery. WorkOS added custom conference software, then invited developers to replace it with their own creations.

One attendee, Braelyn, shared a 17-second Doom demonstration and a collection of animated watch faces. Others built a Tamagotchi-style pet, speech assistants and a flight tracker. WorkOS also highlighted a badge that could act as a TV remote.

Why developers loved it

Unlike most promotional giveaways, this badge is a small general-purpose computer. Developers can use Arduino tools and M5Stack libraries to write code, read sensors and draw graphics. The company published hardware details and beginner projects so people could keep experimenting after the conference.

WorkOS says staff and volunteers spent nights and weekends charging and installing firmware on about 500 devices before the event. The default badge worked offline without requiring an account; more advanced projects could add network access and sign-in.

A tiny lesson in open hardware

The appeal is bigger than getting Doom to run on something strange. A badge-sized computer can teach open-source programming, sensors, displays and embedded systems. Developers can publish their experiments using tools explained in our Git and GitHub guide.

SmartNews takeaway: WorkOS gave attendees a name badge. Developers saw a tiny computer and immediately started inventing things to do with it.

Sources: WorkOS’s October 9 event report and official badge hardware documentation. The embedded YouTube demonstration covers the underlying M5Stack hardware; the X post shows the actual conference Doom modification.