Mender by Northern.tech Extends OTA Update Management to Microcontrollers
April 28, 2026
News
PALO ALTO — April 27, 2026 — Northern.tech, announced the new release of Mender, including support for microcontrollers (MCUs). The new Mender MCU client extends the same enterprise-grade OTA update infrastructure, trusted by companies like Airbus, Siemens, Volkswagen, and ZF Group, to microcontrollers.
Support for the Zephyr real-time operating system (RTOS) is now available, including a reference device when starting with Mender on microcontrollers.
Developers of connected drivetrains, machines, and infrastructure, Dot Robot utilizes Mender for its microcontrollers in production. "Previously, we relied on our hardware-centric approach with a return-to-base policy; as a result, more resources were spent on service and less on cutting-edge features,” states Willem Zwetsloot, Managing Director at DotRobot. "With Mender, we can stay at the forefront of edge computing, introducing features on a weekly basis. Mender gives us the control and confidence to securely manage updates across the entire fleet at scale.”
The new release of Mender enables organizations with multi-device fleets to manage Linux and microcontroller devices from a single platform. "Every connected device deserves the same standard of secure, reliable OTA update infrastructure," comments Eystein Stenberg, CTO of Northern.tech. "IoT products are becoming more complex. Relying on one solution to deliver and manage software across product lines not only offers higher control, but also gains in security, efficiency, and time."
As regulations like the EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) introduce mandatory requirements for secure, automated software updates across the full device lifecycle, organizations must reliably update their fleet — microcontroller, or otherwise — to minimize operational risk and demonstrate compliance. Mender for microcontrollers is designed to address the challenge while also offering a new level of visibility and management for heterogeneous fleets worldwide.
Mender for microcontrollers is available now.
For more information, visit mender.io.
Tiera Oliver is the assistant managing editor at Embedded Computing Design. She is responsible for web content editing, product news, and story development. She also manages, edits, and develops content for ECD podcasts, including Embedded Insiders.
She utilizes her expertise in journalism and content management to oversee editorial content, coordinate with editors, and ensure high-quality output across web, print, and multimedia platforms. She manages diverse projects, assists in the production of digital magazines, and hosts company podcasts by conducting in-depth interviews with industry leaders to deliver engaging and insightful discussions.
Tiera attended Northern Arizona University, where she received her bachelor's in journalism and political science. She was also a news reporter for the student-led newspaper, The Lumberjack.
