Framework Computer Inc

Market position

Framework is positioned as a right-to-repair advocate in the personal computer hardware market, differentiating on repairability and upgradeability rather than disposability. Recognition includes Time's 100 Best Inventions of 2021, Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies 2022, the Red Dot "Best of the Best" Product Design 2022 award for Framework Laptop 13, an iF Design Award in 2022, and a further Red Dot product design award in 2024 for Framework Laptop 16 (sources 0, 3). Preqin classifies the company under hardware, with sub-industries of computer and related peripherals and software (source 4).

Products are designed for easy disassembly and part replacement, earning a 10/10 iFixit repairability score, and the company sells generation-to-generation upgrade kits (for example the 12th Gen Upgrade Kit for 11th Gen owners) so existing machines can be modernized rather than replaced. Partly open-sourced mainboard documentation and open-source embedded controller firmware further distinguish it from conventional PC vendors (sources 0, 3, 6).

Technology

Framework laptops use a modular architecture in which internals can be accessed in under a minute with a single screwdriver and components such as mainboards, batteries, displays and port expansion cards are replaceable; iFixit gave the Framework Laptop a 10/10 repairability score. The Framework Laptop 13 uses proprietary InsydeH2O UEFI firmware from Insyde Software, which Framework modifies from purchased source code, together with an open-source embedded controller firmware based on CrOS EC that was open-sourced in January 2022; the company supports the Linux Vendor Firmware Service. Mainboard CAD and electrical documentation were partly open-sourced in April 2022. Products have shipped with Intel 11th, 12th and 13th Gen Core, Intel Core Ultra Series 1, and AMD Ryzen 7040 and Ryzen AI 300 processors (source 6).

Go-to-market

Sales are made directly to consumers via the company's website, including pre-order campaigns used to open each new geography, with a parts marketplace for modules and upgrade kits. Manufacturing is outsourced to original design manufacturer Compal Electronics (sources 0, 3, 6).

Consumers and buyers of personal computers who value repairability, modularity and upgradeability, including DIY-oriented purchasers, makers and developers (to whom Framework distributed 100 open-documented mainboards), and Chromebook buyers addressed by the 2022 ChromeOS edition (sources 0, 3, 6).

Geography

Headquartered in California — reported as Burlingame (1870 Ogden Dr, per an SEC Form D filing) by Preqin, Seedtable and PrivCo and as San Francisco by Wikipedia. Areas served include the United States, Canada, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Australia, Taiwan, Norway, Switzerland, Singapore and New Zealand. Sales expanded from the US and Canada at launch in July 2021 to the UK, Germany and France in December 2021, Ireland, Austria and the Netherlands in February 2022, and Australia in September 2022. Open roles are posted in Taipei, Taiwan and remotely in the United States (sources 4, 5, 6, 7).

History

The company was founded in January 2020 by Nirav Patel, who worked on software at Apple and was the original Head of Hardware at Oculus. It raised a $9 million seed round in the first half of 2021 and opened pre-orders for the Framework Laptop 13 (11th Gen Intel Core) in May 2021, shipping from July 2021 to the US and Canada. In September 2021 YouTuber Linus Sebastian invested $225,000. Spark Capital led an $18 million Series A in January 2022, and in April 2024 Spark Capital led a $17 million Series A-1 with Buckley Ventures, Anzu Partners, Cooler Master and Pathbreaker Ventures, alongside a $1 million community equity crowdfunding allocation open to 100 SEC-accredited investors at $10,000 each. With the 2024 round the company announced expansion into other areas of consumer electronics (sources 0, 3, 6).

Risks & controversies

Motherboards with 11th Gen Intel Core CPUs have an issue requiring complete removal and reconnection of the main battery and RTC coin cell battery if the laptop goes uncharged for a relatively short period; Framework attributed this to an 11th Gen Intel silicon bug and offered replacement coin cell batteries or mainboards. Initial shipments of AMD-based Framework laptops were delayed by electrical and firmware issues. The 2022 Chromebook edition was criticized by ZDnet, Engadget and PCMag for muffled speakers, poor battery life and price. Public sources also conflict on basic facts such as founding year (2019, 2020 or 2021), headquarters city and total funding ($18M to $45.2M), and the Wikipedia article carries maintenance notices about excessive detail and self-published sources (sources 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).