ThingStudio, an open-source visual programming tool, lets users build Node-RED-style flows on a computer and compile them to MicroPython that runs on the microcontroller itself, according to the project's website¹.

The software targets boards running MicroPython, including ESP32, Raspberry Pi Pico (RP2040 and RP2350), nRF52840 and STM32¹. Development is local: the site said there is no cloud service and no account, and that an installed copy can work offline, documentation included¹.

Unlike Node-RED, where the editor and runtime share one machine, ThingStudio splits the two, the site said¹. Users assemble a flow on macOS, Linux or Windows; the tool compiles it to MicroPython and sends it to the board over USB or Wi-Fi, after which the board does not need the editor to keep running¹.

The project frames microcontroller programs as event-driven chains instead of a single growing main loop, with examples such as a timer reading a sensor and publishing over MQTT while a network message updates a NeoPixel¹. Files are plain indented JSON intended for git; credentials are stored separately so a committed program does not hold secrets, the site said¹.

A browser demo lets people build a flow and inspect the generated MicroPython without installing anything¹. Uploading to hardware requires the desktop app, the site said¹. The license is Apache 2.0¹.

ThingStudio is in beta and aimed at people who already program and have used a microcontroller, not at teaching beginners, according to the site¹. Creator Mike Karliner wrote that each listed chip has run flows on his bench and that independent users have not yet been the main testers¹. Users can add custom nodes and board definitions by dropping files into a folder with no rebuild, it said¹. Independent testing of the compiler, board support and generated firmware was not in the coverage¹.