Framework is teasing a lot of Linux for its April 21st event

6 hours ago 1

Stevie Bonifield

is a news writer covering all things consumer tech. Stevie started out at Laptop Mag writing news and reviews on hardware, gaming, and AI.

Modular PC maker Framework is hosting a “Next Gen” event on April 21st at 1:30PM ET, and it looks like it might have something to do with Linux. Alongside a newsletter announcing the event, Framework posted a video on Thursday titled “Follow the white penguin.” It features a few clear references to Linux, including the iconic penguin, the “I use Arch btw” meme, and a shot cycling through several Linux distro logos, including Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, CachyOS, and Bazzite.

It also said its products are available in four new countries (New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, and Singapore), although it suggested holding off on orders until people see what’s announced later this month.

Framework’s announcement for the event doesn’t give away much, but acknowledges the supply shortages and rising costs facing consumer tech at the moment: “Memory, storage, silicon, and everything related to it is being consumed at unprecedented levels in a ‘winner takes all’ race to an AI-first world.” Framework has been transparent about several price changes in response to these shortages over recent months.

The announcement goes on to address any potential concerns about the company’s fate:

“You might be reading all of this and thinking, is this a farewell letter to personal computing? Is this the end of Framework? No, this is a manifesto. No matter how inevitable the AI-takes-all scenario may sound, as long as there is a person in the world who still wants to own their means of computation, we will be here to build the hardware that enables it. That means computers that you can own at the deepest level and do what you want with, whether that is choosing your OS, modifying your hardware, or even just keeping your data and computation local rather than leased from the cloud. We won’t get there all at once, but we will always be fighting for a future where you can own everything and be free.”

Framework is livestreaming the event on YouTube, but interested fans can also apply to attend the event in person in San Francisco, where they can meet the team and try out new products.

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