join the premier community of budding hackers, makers, artists, inventors, scientists, and entrepreneurs at uconn.
we built this site btw
Kalin Kochnev '25, Co-founderour mission
Hacklab is a budding grassroots initiative to bring together the innovators, creators, and dreamers
of UConn.
We are the kind of people whose spirit and passion tug upon our hearts and minds to satisfy our need
for
learning, creation, community, and ultimately purpose.
We pride ourselves on our attitude
towards
life. We say "can" while others chant "cannot". We leave our cynicism at the door and welcome the
possibilities.
We build each other up through honesty and gratuitous embetterment of each
other.
Life is not a zero sum game. We aim to connect one another with the resources needed to succeed,
inspire, and
forge lifelong connections in the process.
Individually we are talented. Together we are
unstoppable.
Join us and be part of something extraordinary!
Go UConn!!!
meeting and location
The most up to date meeting information will be posted on our Discord. See also our hours and location page.
our community
We host a vibrant online community of makers to meet and discuss cool stuff. You can join our discord here! We have a network of alumni and professors to connect you with amazing opportunities
workshop schedule fall 2025
We host weekly workshops made by students or other special guests on fascinating topics. Whether you are the most or least experienced individual, the workshops are designed for everyone to gain value from them.
We try to emphasize intuitive understanding through visualizations and hands on work to compliment skills learned in class.
| Date | Title | Presenter | Topics |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9/5/2025 | What is Hacklab? | E-board | Hacklab history, shop tour, club projects overview |
| 9/12/2025 | 2-in-1 Workshop:
| Kalin Kochnev | Rust, C/C++, operating systems, microcontrollers, supercomputers, blockchain, cryptographic hashing. |
| 9/19/2025 | Rotations | Vihaan Shah | Robotics, quaternions, computer graphics |
| 9/26/2025 | Workshop: Learn CAD and 3D Print Your Own Design | Kalin Kochnev | OnShape, multi-view drawing, 3D printing/slicing |
| 10/3/2025 | Workshop: How do we measure what we can't see? A signal processing approach | Kalin Kochnev | Triangulation, LTI systems, convolution, Laplace transform, Fourier transform |
| 10/10/2025 | Unconfirmed Machine Learning workshop | ||
| 10/17/2025 | Live Demo: Machining at the Machine Shop | Sean Rescsanski | |
| 10/24/2025 | Workshop: Quantum Computing | Professor Walter Kraweck | |
| 10/31/2025 | Everything Wants to Faceplant. A Talk on PID Control. (pre-req: workshop on 10/3/25) | Kalin Kochnev | Visualizations, classical control systems, signal processing, robotics, stability, convolution, differential equations |
| 11/7/2025 | Workshop: Intro to Modern Controls | Vihaan Shah | |
| 11/14/2025 | Workshop: Intro to Motion Planning | Kalin Kochnev | Dijkstra's algorithm, A*, Rapidly-exploring Random Trees, Probabilistic Roadmaps |
| 11/21/2025 | Workshop: Intro to KiCad | Ken Premo | PCB design |
| 11/28/2025 | Farewell. Advice from a maker | Kalin Kochnev | |
| 12/5/2025 | Finals week - no meeting |
active club projects
We offer a few club-wide projects for students who want a more structured approach to making. No prior experience is required. The depth/difficulty of the projects can scale depending on how much of a challenge you are looking for. Each of these projects are designed to have a smooth learning curve for beginners but the possibilities are essentially limitless if you want to learn more.
DIY Audio Synthesizer
We are following Moritz Klein and Erica Synth's super amazing kit that takes you from ground zero of circuits (what is current/voltage?) all the way to the schematics and modules necessary to build your own synthesizer!
Click on the image to see a demo!
Topics: music production, analog circuits (op-amps, transistors), signal processing.
Difficulty: easy - hard
MILO Mini-Mill Kit
We are assembling the LDO Milo V1.5 CNC Mini-mill kit. They have extremely detailed instructions so anyone can follow along. Mills are an invaluable tool for manufacturing with woods and metals and we plan to use this for instructional lessons in the future!
Topics: electro-mechanical systems, machining.
Difficulty: easy
past student projects
We also highly encourage students to pursue their own projects! That's the primary reason this club and all of its resources exist. Here are some projects that have been worked on by past members.
Autocycle
A completely driverless bicycle, both self-piloting and self-stabilizing. Website
Members: Kalin Kochnev, Vihaan Shah
our tools
things shouldn't sit around to collect dust
Borrow parts, tools, and equipment free of charge from hacklab. See our fully searchable inventory!
onwards!