Back in the early 2000’s, company founder Dan Foisy had just bought a house and was looking to automate the lights, create a security system, etc. (as any self-respecting engineer would want to do). Looking around, Dan found that buying an embedded computer to control all this automation was going to be expensive and so he decided to quit his job as a satellite designer and take the even more expensive path of creating a company to build the embedded computers he needed. In 2007, he started Virtual Cogs Embedded Systems, Inc, a company that designed and manufactured (and sold!) small System On Modules (SOM). Our SOMs were little ARM9 and ARM11 Linux computers on a board, half the size of a credit card, intended to be embedded in other people’s products. We also manufactured a number of daughterboards (LCDs, GPS, motor drivers, etc) that could be stacked together with one of our SOMs to create a full-fledged product. While we had moderate success, the recession of 2008 hit our sales hard and we made the fateful decision to shut the company down. To pay the bills, Dan started A Bit Embedded, a boutique consultancy that worked with companies and startups around the world to develop new products. This lasted until 2010 when the needs of a growing family necessitated that he quit consulting and get a real 9-to-5 job. 14 years and a few Youtube videos later, Dan has resurrected A Bit Embedded to once again help aspiring product designers bring their ideas to reality.