KL-01
Back to the board

Relay R1

A USB-C cellular card in development for MacBook, powered by the laptop, with no internal battery. Supported cellular coverage and service required.

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This device has not been authorized as required by the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. This device is not, and may not be, offered for sale or lease, or sold or leased, until authorization is obtained.

Status
In development
Period
Apr 2026 to present
Discipline
Hardware
Reference
KL-U2
CAD-based render of an earlier Relay R1 shell study in a white finish: a rounded rectangular card with a USB-C connector at one corner, on a dark backdrop.
CAD-based render of an earlier shell study, white finish
CAD-based render of an earlier Relay R1 shell study in a silver finish, from the same camera angle, on a dark backdrop.
CAD-based render of an earlier shell study, silver finish
CAD-based render of an earlier Relay R1 shell study in a black finish, from the same camera angle, on a dark backdrop.
CAD-based render of an earlier shell study, black finish

Overview

R1 is designed so the laptop has its own connection and the phone stays free for everything else. The working line for the project is "Your MacBook online. Your phone free." R1 is designed in Austin. The project covers hardware and firmware, developed together.

The design is deliberately plain on the Mac side. One USB-C port supplies both power and data. R1 is bus-powered and has no internal battery, so there is nothing to charge separately. It is designed to use the wired networking already built into macOS, through CDC-ECM over USB 2.0 data, with no required driver or app. On the cellular side the design is 5G RedCap on sub-6 GHz, with LTE fallback. The intended compatibility is USB-C MacBooks from 2018 onward running macOS 12 or newer. Full compatibility validation is pending.

The work started in April 2026 with an industrial design brief for a dedicated USB-C device for MacBook. In May the first board design reached a complete fabrication-file package. That board and the first enclosure shells were designed by a freelance PCB and industrial designer working to my briefs; I set the requirements and directed the design. In June the first assembled boards powered on, and USB testing exposed a detection fault that informed the next revision. Since then the work has been electrical integration, enclosure development and the software around the device. AI coding agents built the product site and the render pipeline that produces the images on this page, under my direction.

Hardware integration and enclosure development continue. Cellular service is planned through a data partner, with coverage, plans and activation details to be published before launch. Price, shipping date and measured performance have not been announced. The waitlist is free and non-binding, and it is not an order.

Specifications

  • Connectivity is designed as 5G RedCap on sub-6 GHz, with LTE fallback.
  • The interface is USB-C carrying USB 2.0 data, with CDC-ECM networking.
  • R1 is designed to use the wired networking built into macOS, with no required driver or app.
  • Power comes from the MacBook over USB-C, and there is no internal battery.
  • Intended compatibility is USB-C MacBooks from 2018 onward with macOS 12 or newer, with full validation pending.
  • The first board design reached a complete fabrication-file package in May 2026, and the first assembled boards powered on in June 2026.