Linaro
An engineering organization that advances open-source software and hardware enablement across the Arm ecosystem.
Last updated August 22, 2026
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Overview
Linaro is a United Kingdom-based engineering organization focused on open-source software for Arm processor architectures and related heterogeneous computing platforms. It was established in 2010 by Arm, Freescale Semiconductor, IBM, Samsung, ST-Ericsson and Texas Instruments to coordinate engineering resources around low-level software, reduce fragmentation and improve the quality of Linux-based systems running on Arm system-on-chips. Rather than operating primarily as a conventional consumer-facing software brand, Linaro functions as a collaborative technical forum, an upstream engineering contributor and a provider of specialized services to semiconductor, platform and systems companies. Its work sits close to the hardware. Core activities have included Linux kernel development, compiler and toolchain support, power management, graphics, multimedia, virtualization, security, testing and continuous integration. Linaro engineers contribute to and maintain upstream projects, create reference software and help silicon vendors integrate code into broadly used open-source distributions such as Android and Ubuntu. The organization has also worked with the GNU Compiler Collection, LLVM-related tooling, QEMU and other foundational components used by embedded, mobile, cloud and high-performance-computing systems. Since the Linux 3.10 era, Linaro has regularly appeared among the leading contributors to the Linux kernel. Linaro combines collaborative membership programs with a Services division that works directly with individual companies. Its collaborative model gives competing or complementary companies a neutral environment in which to share engineering costs and solve common ecosystem problems. Its direct services work can include upstreaming, software optimization, platform enablement, testing, security engineering, performance analysis and technical strategy. This structure allows Linaro to address problems that would otherwise be duplicated across multiple chip vendors, operating-system providers and equipment manufacturers. Over time, Linaro organized its activity around market and technology groups. These have included consumer and mobile computing, datacenter and cloud, networking, security, digital home, edge and fog computing, IoT and embedded systems, and Windows on Arm. Some groups were later consolidated or closed after their goals or associated projects matured. The organization has also helped establish or govern ecosystem initiatives such as LAVA, an automated validation platform for testing software on physical hardware, and 96Boards, a family of specifications for interoperable, low-cost Arm development boards. Linaro's work has extended beyond Linux distributions. Its security activities supported open-source trusted-execution-environment technology, while its networking activities helped develop common APIs for networking acceleration. In 2021, it participated in the Oniro OS initiative with industry and open-source partners. In 2022, it formed a Windows on Arm group with Arm, Microsoft, Qualcomm and other participants to encourage native development and improve the supporting ecosystem. In 2023, Linaro acquired Arm Forge, a suite of debugging and performance-analysis tools for server and high-performance-computing workloads, and renamed it Linaro Forge. Linaro also hosts Linaro Connect, a recurring engineering conference where hardware manufacturers, software companies, developers and open-source communities collaborate on implementation plans, road maps and technical integration. Its overall positioning is that of an independent, technically deep infrastructure partner for the Arm software ecosystem: it does not sell a mass-market operating system or consumer device, but helps make the underlying software stack more portable, stable, tested and usable across many Arm-based products.
History
Linaro was developed under the working names NewCo or NewCore during early discussions and hiring in 2010. Its public formation was announced at Computex in June 2010 by Arm, Freescale Semiconductor, IBM, Samsung, ST-Ericsson and Texas Instruments. The founders sought to address a recurring problem in the Arm ecosystem: companies were independently maintaining similar low-level software for their system-on-chips, creating duplicated effort and inconsistent support across distributions and platforms. Linaro was designed as a shared engineering organization that could work upstream and produce reusable, tested components for the wider ecosystem. The organization concentrated from the beginning on software close to the silicon. Its core work included Linux kernel features, power management, graphics, multimedia, virtualization, security, compilers, testing and continuous integration. It also produced reference builds and worked with member companies to upstream changes rather than maintaining isolated vendor branches. This emphasis helped Linaro become a recurring contributor to the Linux kernel and other foundational open-source projects. Linaro's automated validation work later included LAVA, a system for testing open-source components on a broad collection of physical Arm hardware. As Arm-based computing expanded beyond phones and embedded devices, Linaro created groups for particular markets. In 2012 it established the Datacenter and Cloud Group, formerly known as the Enterprise Group, to support Arm adoption in servers and hyperscale infrastructure. In 2013 it launched the Networking Group. That activity contributed to the OpenDataPlane initiative, which defined common application programming interfaces for networking software and hardware offloads across processor architectures. Project governance for OpenDataPlane moved to the Openfastpath Foundation in 2018. Security became another important area in 2014, when Linaro created a Security Working Group for open-source Android and Linux reference designs supporting trusted execution environments. The group subsequently took over governance of the Open Portable Trusted Execution Environment project, originally developed by ST-Ericsson. Linaro also created a Digital Home Group in 2014 for Arm-based media gateways and set-top boxes, and formed a Consumer Group later that year by consolidating mobile-oriented activities. In 2015, Linaro launched 96Boards, an open platform specification for compact, relatively inexpensive Arm development boards. The specifications established common physical and interface requirements while allowing vendors to add differentiated features. Consumer, Enterprise, IoT and System-on-Module variants were developed for different markets. In 2016, Linaro added an IoT and Embedded Group to develop complete open-source reference software for connected devices and applications. Linaro reorganized in 2018 as the technology landscape changed. The Networking and Digital Home groups were disbanded, while an Edge and Fog Computing Group was created to focus on distributed computing between cloud infrastructure and end devices. Li Gong became chief executive in 2019. The organization continued to combine membership-based collaborative engineering with one-to-one services for companies requiring platform enablement, upstreaming, optimization or testing. In 2021, Linaro participated in launching Oniro OS with partners including the Eclipse Foundation and companies from the Arm and embedded-software ecosystem. In 2022, it formed a Windows on Arm group with Arm, Microsoft, Qualcomm and other participants to encourage native application and platform development. In 2023, Linaro acquired Arm Forge, a set of debugging and performance-analysis tools used across computing architectures, and renamed the product family Linaro Forge. That year it also disbanded the IoT and Embedded Group, describing the group's mission as complete after open-source software projects for Arm-based microcontrollers had reached greater maturity. Linaro remains best understood as an ecosystem engineering institution rather than a mass-market product brand. Its influence comes through upstream code, shared specifications, validation infrastructure, developer collaboration, technical services and events such as Linaro Connect, where hardware and software organizations work on implementation plans and road maps.
- 2023
Arm Forge becomes Linaro Forge
[1]Linaro acquires Arm Forge and continues the debugging and performance-analysis suite under its own brand.
- 2022
Windows on Arm Group is formed
[1]Linaro works with Arm, Microsoft, Qualcomm and other partners to support native Windows on Arm development.
- 2021
Oniro OS project launches
[1]Linaro joins partners in establishing the Oniro OS open-source operating-system initiative.
- 2019
Li Gong becomes CEO
[1]Li Gong is appointed chief executive of Linaro.
- 2018
Engineering structure is reorganized
[1]Networking and Digital Home activities are closed as standalone groups, while Edge and Fog Computing becomes a dedicated focus.
- 2016
IoT and Embedded Group is launched
[1]Linaro establishes a group dedicated to open-source reference software for connected devices and embedded applications.
- 2015
96Boards is launched
[1]The organization introduces open specifications for interoperable, compact Arm development boards.
- 2014
Security and Digital Home groups are launched
[1]Linaro expands into trusted execution environments, media gateways and set-top-box software.
- 2013
Networking Group launches
[1]Linaro establishes a networking-focused group that later contributes to the OpenDataPlane initiative.
- 2012
Datacenter and Cloud Group is formed
[1]Linaro creates a group focused on enabling Arm processors in server, cloud and hyperscale computing.
Products and positioning
A neutral, collaborative engineering partner for upstream open-source development and software enablement across Arm-based computing, spanning embedded devices, mobile platforms, edge systems, servers, cloud infrastructure and high-performance computing.
Automated validation and testing
LAVA
LAVA, or Linaro Automated Validation Architecture, is an automated testing system for open-source software components running on physical hardware. It helps engineers test kernels, boot processes, drivers, distributions and other platform components across varied Arm boards and systems. The project supports repeatable validation and continuous integration, reducing the risk that changes work on one reference platform but fail on another.
Development-board specifications · 2015
96Boards
96Boards is a family of open hardware specifications for compact, low-cost development boards based on 32-bit and 64-bit Arm processors. The specifications define minimum interfaces and form-factor requirements while allowing board makers to differentiate through processors, peripherals and other features. Published variants have addressed consumer, enterprise, IoT and system-on-module use cases.
Debugging and performance analysis software · 2023
Linaro Forge
Linaro Forge is the renamed continuation of Arm Forge, a suite of tools for debugging and analyzing the performance of applications across multiple compute architectures. It is aimed particularly at server and high-performance-computing users who need to inspect parallel programs, identify bottlenecks and improve application behavior on modern heterogeneous systems.
Open-source platform engineering · 2010
Core Engineering
Linaro's Core Engineering activity maintains and contributes to foundational software used throughout the Arm ecosystem. Areas include Linux kernel functionality, power management, security, compiler and LLVM-related tooling, virtualization, graphics, multimedia, testing and continuous integration. The work is generally upstream-oriented and is intended to produce reusable, tested software for multiple distributions and member-company systems-on-chip.
Marketing campaigns
- Linaro Connect
Global
Linaro Connect is a recurring engineering conference that brings together semiconductor companies, operating-system developers, hardware manufacturers, software vendors and open-source contributors. Sessions and working meetings are used to coordinate technical road maps, develop code, discuss standards and align ecosystem priorities across Arm-based computing.
Outcome. It serves as a collaboration and planning forum for the Arm software ecosystem.
Brand decisions
2023
Acquisition of Arm ForgeM&ABackground
Debugging and performance-analysis tools are important for server and high-performance-computing users working across heterogeneous architectures.
Action taken
Linaro acquired Arm Forge and renamed the suite Linaro Forge.
Aftermath
The acquisition expanded Linaro's portfolio from ecosystem engineering and services into branded developer tools for debugging and performance analysis.
2022
Formation of the Windows on Arm GroupStrategyBackground
The Windows on Arm ecosystem required more native applications, development tools and coordinated platform support.
Action taken
Linaro formed a dedicated group with Arm, Microsoft, Qualcomm and other participants to encourage native Windows on Arm development.
Aftermath
The group provided a structured forum for improving software enablement and ecosystem coordination for Windows systems using Arm processors.
2021
Launch of Oniro OSProduct launchBackground
Connected and embedded-device developers needed open-source operating-system options that could span different classes of hardware and software environments.
Action taken
Linaro joined partners in launching the Oniro OS initiative in cooperation with the Eclipse Foundation and other ecosystem participants.
Aftermath
Oniro became part of Linaro's broader open-source work in embedded and connected systems.
2018
Reorganization around changing technology marketsStrategyBackground
Linaro adjusted its structure as networking, digital-home and distributed-computing priorities evolved.
Action taken
The Networking and Digital Home groups were disbanded, and an Edge and Fog Computing Group was created.
Aftermath
Engineering resources were aligned with edge and distributed-computing opportunities while mature or separately governed initiatives continued outside the former group structure.
2015
Launch of 96BoardsProduct launchBackground
Arm development was fragmented across many vendor-specific boards and form factors, making it harder for developers to compare platforms and reuse accessories and software.
Action taken
Linaro introduced a family of common board specifications covering required interfaces and physical constraints for several market segments.
Aftermath
The specifications expanded into Consumer, Enterprise, IoT and System-on-Module editions and became a recognizable platform for Arm development.
Recent events
- 2023
Linaro acquires Arm Forge and renames it Linaro Forge[1]
M&A · Product generation
Linaro acquired Arm Forge, a debugging and performance-analysis software suite for server and high-performance-computing workloads, and continued it under the Linaro Forge name.
- 2022
Linaro forms a Windows on Arm group[1]
Other
Linaro, Arm, Microsoft, Qualcomm and other participants formed a group intended to strengthen native software development and ecosystem support for Windows on Arm.
- 2021
Linaro launches the Oniro OS project[1]
Product launch
Linaro joined industry and open-source partners to launch Oniro OS, an open-source operating-system initiative associated with the Eclipse Foundation and based on OpenHarmony-related work.
- 2019
Li Gong appointed Linaro chief executive[1]
Leadership change
Li Gong became Linaro's chief executive, according to the organization's documented history.
- 2018
Linaro reorganizes engineering groups[1]
Other
Linaro adjusted its engineering structure to reflect changing technology priorities, closing its networking and digital-home groups and creating an Edge and Fog Computing Group.
- 2016
Linaro launches its IoT and Embedded Group[1]
Other
The group was created to develop end-to-end open-source reference software for Internet-of-Things devices and applications.
- 2015
Linaro launches 96Boards[1]
Product launch
Linaro introduced 96Boards, an open specification intended to make low-cost, compact and interoperable Arm development boards easier to produce and use.
- 2014
Linaro establishes a Security Working Group[1]
Other
Linaro created a security-focused working group to develop open reference designs and software for trusted execution environments on Android and Linux.
- 2013
Linaro launches the Networking Group[1]
Other
The new group focused on common Linux and networking technologies for Arm platforms and later helped initiate the OpenDataPlane effort.
- 2010
Linaro announces formation of the organization[1]
Other
Arm and five industry partners announced Linaro as a collaborative organization intended to improve and coordinate open-source software development for Arm-based systems-on-chip.
Sources2 sources
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