Microsoft winds down The Garage and its Global Hackathon

Microsoft is ending The Garage as a companywide program after 17 years, closing the side-project spaces and hackathon hub launched under Satya Nadella. The flagship Redmond site and a dozen-plus locations from Vancouver to Beijing are affected, with some spaces restricted as early as Oct. 23. The future of the Global Hackathon remains unsettled.

• The Garage began in 2009 and ran Microsoft's first companywide hackathon in 2014
• It had locations in 15 regions, including Redmond, Vancouver, India and Beijing
• Employees cannot take equipment, tools or materials with them
• The Global Hackathon team is 'reimagining the program,' Microsoft says