Building Bots and Bridging Communities: Dr. Jon Durant (Dr Jon EA) on PROCEPTION Live

On the latest episode of PROCEPTION Live, hosted by Hackster PRO Robert Wolff, we took a deep dive into the creative orbit of Dr. Jon Durant, known online as Dr. Jon EA — whose journey from enterprise IT architect to beloved maker and YouTuber is nothing short of inspirational.

Dr. Durant joined us on his birthday (yes, really), bringing not just years of technical depth but a gallery of delightful projects that blend engineering prowess with playful invention. His specialty? Making complex things feel within reach, and reminding us that building is supposed to be fun.

From architect to maker-educator

After decades in corporate IT helping businesses view technology as a strategic asset, not just a cost center, Dr. Durant pivoted toward something more hands-on and community-driven. He launched a series of Udemy courses on IT architecture, but soon found his real passion: embedded systems, Raspberry Pi, and sharing projects online to help others build and learn.

He’s now a full-time content creator, producing engaging tutorials and quirky tech builds that bridge the gap between serious engineering and weekend tinkering.

Projects on display

During the stream, Dr. Durant showcased several standout builds:

• Pixel Ring: A 24-LED WS2812 ring animation project powered by Raspberry Pi Pico, simple, glowy fun, perfect for live demos.
• The Halloween Skull: Dual RP2040s behind eerie eye movements using UART and Waveshare displays, all crammed into a creepy 3D-printed skull.
• Rex P1: The crown jewel of the stream. Inspired by R2-D2 but purpose-built for autonomy, this charming bot features a distributed microcontroller system, screen-equipped dome, tilt mechanism, and a whole lot of clever engineering. It's not just remote-controlled, it’s a robot that’s designed to think, navigate, and interact (eventually).

With future iterations aiming at facial recognition, ROS2-based navigation, and environmental interaction, Rex P1 is more than a cool bot, it’s a robotics platform in progress.

The human side of hardware

One of the most refreshing parts of the stream was the open conversation about the myth of the “full stack developer,” burnout in solo content creation, and the importance of community. Dr. Durant's take? Be honest about what you know, have fun with what you don’t, and bring others along for the ride.

He also plugged his GitHub Sponsors page, where fans and fellow makers can support his work and access premium content like the detailed Rex P1 build files.

TL;DR? Go watch it.

If you missed the livestream, catch the full episode on devEco’s YouTube channel. It’s a joyful mix of robotics, teaching, jokes about robot Santa, and two makers geeking out over hardware like it’s 1977.

Whether you’re a budding builder or a seasoned embedded dev, you’ll leave inspired, and probably thinking about how to print your own friendly droid.

Or come hang out with us for PROCEPTION after hours in the Hackster.io Discord, and you can also join us in the devEco as well! (Apply here.)