ByoWave's Modular Controller Kit Replaces the One-Size-Fits-All Gamepad

The first thing you notice is the quiet. The Proteus Controller doesn't arrive as a single, solid object. It arrives as a kit, a collection of parts in a box, with no predetermined shape. There are hexagonal modules, buttons that can be placed anywhere, a central hub, and a tangle of magnetic connectors. The silence is the point. It is a hardware prompt, a question posed in plastic and silicone: what do your hands need to play?

For the team at ByoWave, a startup based in Galway, Ireland, that question is the entire business. Founded in 2020 by Brandon Blacoe and Eibhlin O'Riordan, the company sells the Proteus, a modular video game controller kit designed explicitly for gamers with limb or digit mobility challenges who find traditional controllers difficult or impossible to use [ByoWave website, 2024]. The product's patented design claims to enable over 100 million configurations, a number that speaks less to technical possibility and more to a philosophy of radical personalization [ByoWave website, 2024]. It is hardware as a starting point, not a finished product.

The wedge of modularity

ByoWave's bet is that the one-size-fits-all gamepad is an anachronism, a relic from an era when gaming was a narrower cultural pursuit. Their wedge is modularity itself. The Proteus Controller is a system of interchangeable parts that users can arrange in any physical layout that suits their specific motor abilities. A gamer who can only use one hand can build a compact, single-handed controller. Someone with limited finger dexterity can space large buttons far apart across a flat surface. The company has developed the controller in close collaboration with Microsoft, ensuring deep compatibility as an adaptive Xbox controller for Series X/S, Xbox One, and Windows [The Verge, 2024]. Support has also been added to the Linux kernel, broadening its reach to PC and Steam Deck gamers [Phoronix, 2025].

This approach turns the controller from a consumption device into a creative tool. ByoWave encourages users to build and share their configurations online, fostering a community around bespoke setups. The product recently won Best Assistive Technology at the 2024 Games Accessibility Awards, a signal of validation from the very community it aims to serve [ByoWave website, 2024].

Traction through a social enterprise lens

ByoWave operates with the dual engines of a direct-to-consumer hardware business and a social enterprise. Its early traction reflects this hybrid model. The company sold 25 beta versions of the Proteus Controller to disabled gamers worldwide, including in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, and Ireland [James Dyson Award, 2022]. According to the company's own channels, the first production batch has sold out, with a second batch shipping soon and direct orders actively fulfilling [ByoWave blog, 2025]; [ByoWave products page, Unknown].

Funding has come from a patchwork of Irish angel networks and public institutions, including Irrus Investments, the Halo Business Angel Network, and Enterprise Ireland, with a seed round reported in 2024 [Irish Independent, Unknown]. The team remains small, estimated at between one and ten employees [iF Design, Unknown]. The founders, Brandon Blacoe and Eibhlin O'Riordan, along with engineer Ronan Murphy, were recognized with an Engineers Ireland Innovative Graduate Engineer of the Year award for the controller's design [Silicon Republic, Unknown].

Role	Name	Background Note
CEO & Engineer	Brandon Blacoe	Co-founder; Engineers Ireland award winner [LinkedIn, 2026]; [Silicon Republic, Unknown]
CXO	Eibhlin O'Riordan	Co-founder; first team member [ByoWave Press Kit, Unknown]; [The Org, Unknown]

The scale of a niche

The most honest counterfactual for ByoWave is not a competing product, but the fundamental economics of serving a niche. The market for specialized adaptive controllers, while deeply meaningful, is not the mass market that drives traditional consumer electronics scale. The company's path to sustainability hinges on several factors:

• Premium positioning. As a modular kit solving a critical access problem, the Proteus can command a price point that supports lower volume manufacturing. It is currently listed at $299 [PC Gamer, Unknown].
• Institutional adoption. The company's early collaboration with Microsoft points to a strategy of embedding its technology as a platform-approved solution, which can drive legitimacy and reduce customer acquisition costs.
• Grant and award funding. By aligning with social impact goals, ByoWave taps into non-dilutive funding sources like the awards from Social Entrepreneurs Ireland and the James Dyson Award, which can extend its runway [Social Entrepreneurs Ireland, Unknown]; [James Dyson Award, 2022].

The risk is that the total addressable market may be too constrained for venture-scale returns, a tension inherent in many mission-driven hardware startups. ByoWave's answer appears to be a lean operation funded by a mix of impact-aligned capital and direct sales, aiming for durability over hyper-growth.

What to watch in Galway

The next twelve months will test the transition from award-winning prototype to reliable commercial product. Key milestones to watch include the successful fulfillment of the second production batch and any expansion of its retail footprint, hinted at by mentions of limited-edition collections on Amazon [Reddit, Unknown]. A hire for a Part-Time Social Media Creator role suggests a push to grow the community and user-generated content around configurations [ByoWave careers, Unknown]. The larger, unspoken milestone is whether the stories and setups shared by its users begin to influence mainstream controller design elsewhere, creating a halo effect that expands ByoWave's impact beyond its own sales.

There is a cultural question embedded in the Proteus Controller's silent box of parts. For decades, video games asked players to adapt their bodies to the hardware. The controller was a gatekeeper, its form factor an unspoken requirement for entry. ByoWave is built on inverting that question. It asks the hardware to adapt to the player. The success of this small company from Galway won't just be measured in units sold or rounds raised, but in how many different, quiet answers its kit can help to build.

Sources

1. [ByoWave website, 2024] ByoWave homepage and product claims | https://byowave.com
2. [The Verge, 2024] Coverage of Proteus Controller as adaptive Xbox controller | https://www.theverge.com
3. [Phoronix, 2025] Linux kernel support for Proteus Controller | https://www.phoronix.com
4. [James Dyson Award, 2022] Proteus Controller project page and beta sales | https://www.jamesdysonaward.org/en-US/2022/project/proteus-controller
5. [ByoWave blog, 2025]; [ByoWave products page, Unknown] Product availability and batch updates | https://byowave.com/blogs/community
6. [Irish Independent, Unknown] Seed funding report | https://www.independent.ie/business/technology/lego-for-video-game-controllers-15m-funding-boost-for-accessible-games-controller-start-up-byowave/a207925516.html
7. [iF Design, Unknown] Company profile and employee range | https://ifdesign.com/en/brands-creatives/company/byowave/19610
8. [Silicon Republic, Unknown] Engineers Ireland award announcement | https://www.siliconrepublic.com/start-ups/fieldofvision-engineers-ireland-award
9. [ByoWave Press Kit, Unknown] Founder background | https://byowave.com/press-kit
10. [The Org, Unknown] Executive team listing | https://theorg.com
11. [LinkedIn, 2026] Brandon Blacoe profile | https://ie.linkedin.com/in/brandon-blacoe-%F0%9F%94%9C-gamescom-44932369
12. [PC Gamer, Unknown] Pricing and product overview | https://www.pcgamer.com/hardware/controllers/the-proteus-controller-is-a-dollar299-modular-input-device-for-players-with-disabilities-and-microsoft-has-more-good-news-for-accessibility/
13. [Social Entrepreneurs Ireland, Unknown] ByoWave profile | https://www.socialentrepreneurs.ie/brandon-eibhlin-byowave-2/
14. [Reddit, Unknown] Mention of Amazon availability | https://www.reddit.com
15. [ByoWave careers, Unknown] Job posting for Social Media Creator | https://www.byowave.com/careers/part-time-social-media-creator-manager-gaming-technology