One-time setup · about 5 minutes
Install Pybricks firmware
SPIKE Prime or Robot Inventor hub
Charged battery. Both hub versions work.
The hub's USB cable
Plugged straight into the computer.
Chrome or Edge
On Windows, macOS, ChromeOS or Linux.
- 1
Windows only, first time: set up the USB driver
Mac, Chromebook or Linux? Skip this step. Windows needs a driver called WinUSB before the browser can reach a hub in update mode. You do this once per computer. School laptops may need someone with admin rights.
- Put the hub into update mode (see step 4), keeping it plugged in.
- Right-click the Start button and open Device Manager.
- Under Other devices, find LEGO Technic Large Hub in DFU Mode (it has a yellow warning sign).
- Right-click it → Update driver → Browse my computer for drivers → Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer.
- Choose Universal Serial Bus devices → Next.
- Pick WinUsb Device on both sides → Next → Yes to the warning. It now appears under Universal Serial Bus devices.
Setting up lots of laptops? The free tool Zadig does the same job: open it, choose Options → List All Devices, pick LEGO Technic Large Hub in DFU Mode, choose WinUSB and press Install Driver.
Newer 2026 hubs may show a different name. Pick the device that only appears while the hub is in update mode.
- 2
Open the Pybricks installer
Open code.pybricks.com in Chrome or Edge, open the menu and choose Install Pybricks Firmware. Pick SPIKE Prime Hub (or MINDSTORMS Robot Inventor Hub) and accept the licence.
- 3
Name your hub
When it asks for a hub name, use a short label you'll write on a sticker, like
HP-R4-07(room 4, robot 7). - 4
Put the hub into update mode and install
The installer shows the exact steps for your hub. For most hubs: turn the hub off and unplug it. Press and hold the Bluetooth button, plug in the USB cable, and keep holding until the Bluetooth light flashes red, green and blue. Then let go.
Press Connect, choose LEGO Technic Large Hub in DFU Mode in the browser pop-up, and wait about a minute for the install to finish. Don't unplug the hub.
SPIKE Prime hubs bought in 2026 or later have new electronics and a different button combination. Follow the installer's on-screen steps for those.
- 5
Check it in HubPilot
Unplug the hub and turn it on. Open any project, press Connect hub and pick its name. The Hub panel should say Pybricks firmware.
Set up a robot
Hub has HubPilot or HubSync firmware?
We no longer offer our own firmware. Hubs running it can't drive from HubPilot until the official Pybricks firmware is installed. Follow the steps above. Your saved projects aren't affected.
Updates & going back to LEGO
- Updates are optional. HubPilot tells you when you connect if a hub is too old for Xbox pairing (it needs Pybricks v3.3 or newer).
- To update, repeat steps 2 to 4 (the Windows driver stays installed). The setup stored on the hub is erased, but your saved projects are safe.
- To restore LEGO firmware, connect the hub to the LEGO Education SPIKE app with USB and accept its firmware update.
Xbox controller updates
- Controllers need their Bluetooth LE update. Series X|S controllers usually have it already.
- Xbox One controllers with Bluetooth (model 1708) and Elite Series 2 need updating once: plug into a Windows PC and use the Xbox Accessories app, or update from an Xbox console.
- The original 2013 Xbox One controller has no Bluetooth and won't work.
About Pybricks
Pybricks firmware is what lets your hub pair with an Xbox controller. HubPilot is an independent project: it isn't made, sponsored or endorsed by Pybricks, and it doesn't include or distribute any Pybricks firmware.
Pybricks is © The Pybricks Authors. Much of it is open source under the MIT licence, and some parts, including Xbox controller support, are not.
If HubPilot helps your class, please support the Pybricks team.