About Maple

Much loved by users around the world, the STM32-based single board computer surpassed the capabilities of similar products when it was released in 2009.  Maple was followed by the Maple Mini in 2011, a "breadboard-able" PCB for applications where space was limited. The free software toolchain and open-source library of the Maple series reflected the open-source roots of LeafLabs.

It wasn’t just a board. Maple helped catalyze a movement toward more powerful, open embedded development platforms. It put LeafLabs on the map as a team of engineers unafraid to question what embedded systems could look like.

The Challenge

At the time, most accessible microcontroller platforms, like Arduino, relied on 8-bit AVR chips with limited performance and memory. While these worked well for simple tasks, they constrained more ambitious projects in robotics, signal processing, and advanced control.

We saw an opportunity: bring modern 32-bit processing into the hands of makers, students, and researchers, while preserving the simplicity of the Arduino workflow. But that meant building everything from the ground up: new hardware, a custom bootloader, a software toolchain, and a development environment that worked out of the box.

Our Approach

LeafLabs designed Maple as a powerful yet accessible development board featuring the STM32F103 ARM Cortex-M3 processor. We created a custom board layout, a USB bootloader, and an open-source toolchain that allowed the board to be programmed through the Arduino IDE, bridging the gap between beginner-friendly tooling and modern embedded architecture.

This required deep work in:

• ARM-based firmware development

• Compiler toolchain configuration

• USB serial communication stack

• Board bring-up and production testing

We also engaged early with the open-source community to ensure extensibility and adoption. Maple wasn’t just about the board, it was about enabling a broader developer ecosystem.

Impact

Maple shipped to tens of thousands of users worldwide and was adopted in academic labs, early-stage hardware startups, and open-source projects. It helped usher in an era of 32-bit computing in DIY and research settings, and directly inspired the creation of STM32duino and other platforms.

Maple’s legacy lives on in modern toolchains, workflows, and even in LeafLabs' own engineering ethos: bring ambitious ideas to life by combining technical rigor with usability and openness.

Maple wasn’t a client project, it was an act of engineering rebellion. It proved that embedded platforms could be fast, flexible, and community-driven at a time when that was not the norm. And it taught us how to design systems that are not just functional, but inspiring.

Capabilities

• Board Design

• Firmware Development

• Custom Bootloader Design

• USB Communication Stack Development

• Compiler & Toolchain Integration

• Board Bring-Up & Testing

• Commercial Production & Manufacturing

• Documentation & Developer Enablement

• Open Source Community Engagement

• Early-Stage Product Strategy

Maple Resources

The LeafLabs Maple line and the libmaple library are no longer supported by LeafLabs as of March 2015, and are considered end-of-life. The design files for Maple and Maple Mini remain available on GitHub, under a CC-BY-SA 2.0 license, for anyone who wants to recreate or reimagine these boards. libmaple will also stay on GitHub, and we will continue to take community patches.

You can still read the docs. The forums have been converted to a static archive as of August 2016.

We recommend checking out the resources and community at stm32duino.com.