Various space agencies, including NASA and the Canadian Space Agency, support the development and launch of Cubesats by students through programs like the NASA Cubesat Launch Initiative and the Canadian Cubesat Project (CCP).

In 1999, professors Jordi Puig-Suari and Bob Twiggs from California Polytechnic State University and Stanford University proposed a design for a miniaturized satellite to help students develop skills in satellite design, construction, testing, and operation.

Nanoracks has developed a Cubesat deployer that can house multiple Cubesats, which are built using standardized modules with a useful volume of 10 x 10 x 10 centimeters and a maximum mass of 2 kilograms.