diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index f43a7339a..eda6d39bb 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -408,12 +408,14 @@ App|Description
 
 These are examples of how to build universal binaries which run on RP2040, and RP2350 Arm & RISC-V.
 These require you to set `PICO_ARM_TOOLCHAIN_PATH` and `PICO_RISCV_TOOLCHAIN_PATH` to appropriate paths, to ensure you have compilers for both architectures.
+These are designed for dragging & dropping onto a device, so may not load as expected when using `picotool`.
+See the separate [README](universal/README.md) for more details of how these work.
 
 App|Description
 ---|---
-[blink_universal](universal/CMakeLists.txt#L126) | Same as the [blink](blink) example, but universal.
+[blink_universal](universal/blink_universal) | A universal blink which works for all Pico-series and Pico W-series boards.
 [hello_universal](universal/hello_universal) | The obligatory Hello World program for Pico (USB and serial output). On RP2350 it will reboot to the other architecture after every 10 prints.
-[nuke_universal](universal/CMakeLists.txt#L132) | Same as the [nuke](flash/nuke) example, but universal. On RP2350 runs as a packaged SRAM binary, so it is written to flash and copied to SRAM by the bootloader.
+[nuke_universal](universal/CMakeLists.txt) | Same as the [nuke](flash/nuke) example, but universal.
 
 ### USB Device
 
diff --git a/universal/CMakeLists.txt b/universal/CMakeLists.txt
index f80fbd436..84a1bc0df 100644
--- a/universal/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/universal/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -20,10 +20,15 @@ include(ExternalProject)
 #
 # The build will output a TARGET.bin file which can be written using picotool, and a
 # TARGET.uf2 file which can be dragged and dropped onto the device in BOOTSEL mode
+#
+# If SEPARATE_RP2040 is set, the RP2040 binary will not be included in the block loop,
+# so the RP2040 UF2 file will only contain the RP2040 binary, and the RP2350 UF2 file will
+# contain the combined binary excluding the RP2040 binary.
 function (add_universal_target TARGET SOURCE)
-    set(oneValueArgs SOURCE_TARGET PADDING PACKADDR)
+    set(zeroValueArgs SEPARATE_RP2040)
+    set(oneValueArgs SOURCE_TARGET PADDING PACKADDR BOARD_RP2040 BOARD_RP2350)
     set(multiValueArgs PLATFORMS)
-    cmake_parse_arguments(PARSE_ARGV 2 PARSED "" "${oneValueArgs}" "${multiValueArgs}")
+    cmake_parse_arguments(PARSE_ARGV 2 PARSED "${zeroValueArgs}" "${oneValueArgs}" "${multiValueArgs}")
 
     set(SOURCE_TARGET ${TARGET})
     if (PARSED_SOURCE_TARGET)
@@ -41,6 +46,13 @@ function (add_universal_target TARGET SOURCE)
     if (PARSED_PLATFORMS)
         set(PLATFORMS ${PARSED_PLATFORMS})
     endif()
+    # these could be set as CMake variables, so only override if explicitly passed as arguments
+    if (PARSED_BOARD_RP2040)
+        set(PICO_BOARD_RP2040 ${PARSED_BOARD_RP2040})
+    endif()
+    if (PARSED_BOARD_RP2350)
+        set(PICO_BOARD_RP2350 ${PARSED_BOARD_RP2350})
+    endif()
     # rp2040 must come first, as that has checksum requirements at the start of the binary
     list(FIND PLATFORMS "rp2040" idx)
     if (idx GREATER 0)
@@ -100,13 +112,35 @@ function (add_universal_target TARGET SOURCE)
         message(FATAL_ERROR "Cannot link universal binary without picotool")
     endif()
 
-    # Link the binaries for different platforms into a single block loop, with
-    # appropriate rolling window deltas. This creates a universal binary file,
-    # which will run on any of the platforms when loaded using picotool.
-    add_custom_target(${TARGET}_combined
-            COMMAND picotool link ${COMBINED} ${BINS} --pad ${PADDING}
-            DEPENDS ${DEPS}
-            )
+    list(FIND PLATFORMS "rp2040" idx)
+    if (idx EQUAL 0 AND PARSED_SEPARATE_RP2040)
+        # Don't include RP2040 bin in the combined BIN, just include it in the RP2040 UF2
+        # POP_FRONT only added in CMake 3.15, so use GET and REMOVE_AT instead
+        list(GET BINS 0 RP2040_BIN)
+        list(REMOVE_AT BINS 0)
+        set(RP2040_COMBINED ${RP2040_BIN})
+    else()
+        set(RP2040_COMBINED ${COMBINED})
+    endif()
+
+    list(LENGTH BINS BINS_COUNT)
+    if (BINS_COUNT GREATER 1)
+        # Link the binaries for different platforms into a single block loop, with
+        # appropriate rolling window deltas. This creates a universal binary file,
+        # which will run on any of the platforms when loaded using picotool.
+        add_custom_target(${TARGET}_combined
+                COMMAND picotool link ${COMBINED} ${BINS} --pad ${PADDING}
+                DEPENDS ${DEPS}
+                )
+    else()
+        # Only one binary left, so no picotool link is needed - just copy instead
+        # This could be the case if only building for rp2040 and rp2350-arm-s,
+        # with SEPARATE_RP2040 set
+        add_custom_target(${TARGET}_combined
+                COMMAND ${CMAKE_COMMAND} -E copy ${BINS} ${COMBINED}
+                DEPENDS ${DEPS}
+                )
+    endif()
 
     # Create UF2s targeting the absolute and rp2040 family IDs, then combine these
     # into a single universal UF2. This is required as there isn't a single family
@@ -117,7 +151,7 @@ function (add_universal_target TARGET SOURCE)
             DEPENDS ${TARGET}_combined
             )
     add_custom_target(${TARGET}_rp2040_uf2
-            COMMAND picotool uf2 convert ${COMBINED} ${BINDIR}/rp2040.uf2 --family rp2040 --offset ${PACKADDR}
+            COMMAND picotool uf2 convert ${RP2040_COMBINED} ${BINDIR}/rp2040.uf2 --family rp2040 --offset ${PACKADDR}
             DEPENDS ${TARGET}_combined
             )
     add_custom_target(${TARGET}_uf2
@@ -135,8 +169,13 @@ add_universal_target(hello_universal
 
 # blink binary
 add_universal_target(blink_universal
-    ${CMAKE_CURRENT_LIST_DIR}/../blink
-    SOURCE_TARGET blink
+    ${CMAKE_CURRENT_LIST_DIR}/blink_universal
+    SOURCE_TARGET blink_universal
+    BOARD_RP2040 universal
+    BOARD_RP2350 universal
+    # Skip RISC-V and keep RP2040 separate, as wifi firmware takes up lots of space
+    PLATFORMS "rp2040;rp2350-arm-s"
+    SEPARATE_RP2040
     )
 
 # nuke binary - is no_flash, so needs to be sent to SRAM on RP2040
diff --git a/universal/README.md b/universal/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9b4f3ede5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/universal/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,55 @@
+# Universal Examples
+
+These examples show ways to load the same code onto different chips, and package
+it in such a way that the bootrom only executes the code compatible with that chip.
+
+## Universal Binary vs Universal UF2
+
+There is a difference between a **Universal Binary** and a **Universal UF2**,
+for the purposes of these examples:
+- A **Universal Binary** is a `.bin` file that can be loaded into flash (or sram) and executed,
+allowing RP2040 and RP2350 (Arm & RISC-V) to run from identical flash contents.
+- A **Universal UF2** is multiple individual `.uf2` files with different family IDs
+concatenated together to create a single `.uf2` file. When dragged & dropped onto a device, 
+only the portion of the file with a family ID corresponding to that device will be processed, and the
+rest of the file will be ignored.
+
+A **Universal Binary** can be packaged into a UF2 file for loading onto a device. However,
+as there isn't a common family ID between RP2040 and RP2350, you would have to package it into a **Universal UF2** with two copies (using `rp2040` and `absolute` family IDs), thus creating a **Universal UF2** of a **Universal Binary**.
+
+## How Universal Binaries work
+
+Universal binaries must be recognised by both the RP2040 and RP2350 bootroms. Therefore, they need the following structure for flash binaries:
+- RP2040 boot2
+  - Required by the RP2040 bootrom
+- RP2040 binary containing an embedded block
+  - The embedded block contains an `IGNORED` item due to RP2350-E13, but you can use an RP2040
+  `IMAGE_DEF` item instead if not using RP2350-A2 chips
+- RP2350 Arm binary containing an embedded block
+  - In addition to the RP2350 `IMAGE_DEF` item, this embedded block contains a
+  `ROLLING_WINDOW_DELTA` item to translate this binary to the start of flash for execution
+- RP2350 RISC-V binary containing an embedded block
+  - Ditto
+
+All of the embedded blocks are linked into one big block loop.
+
+These are then booted by the respective bootroms:
+- **RP2040** - sees the boot2 at the start and uses that to execute the RP2040 binary, as
+RP2040 has no support for embedded blocks.
+- **RP2350** - sees the block loop and parses it to find the correct embedded block to boot
+from (Arm vs RISC-V). It then translates the flash address according to the
+`ROLLING_WINDOW_DELTA` so that the binary containing that embedded block appears at the start of the
+flash address space, and executes from there.
+
+For no_flash binaries the RP2040 boot2 is omitted as the RP2040 bootrom just executes from the start
+of SRAM, and instead of `ROLLING_WINDOW_DELTA` items the RP2350 binaries use `LOAD_MAP` items,
+to copy the code in SRAM to the correct location for execution rather than using address
+translation.
+
+## How you should use them
+
+For most use cases, **Universal UF2s** are the best option to use. They will only load the
+code that runs on that device into flash. The [blink_universal](blink_universal) example uses a
+Universal UF2 for that reason, as the Wi-Fi firmware is quite large. **Universal Binaries**
+are only currently useful when the commonality of having a single `.bin` file for programming
+outweighs the disadvantage of the extra flash usage.
diff --git a/universal/blink_universal/CMakeLists.txt b/universal/blink_universal/CMakeLists.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7192989a8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/universal/blink_universal/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+if (NOT PICO_BOARD STREQUAL "universal")
+    message(FATAL_ERROR "PICO_BOARD for blink_universal must be set to 'universal', not '${PICO_BOARD}'")
+    return()
+endif()
+
+add_executable(blink_universal
+    blink_universal.c
+    )
+
+# pull in common dependencies
+target_link_libraries(blink_universal pico_stdlib hardware_adc)
+target_link_libraries(blink_universal pico_cyw43_arch_none)
+
+# create map/bin/hex file etc.
+pico_add_extra_outputs(blink_universal)
+
+# add url via pico_set_program_url
+example_auto_set_url(blink_universal)
diff --git a/universal/blink_universal/blink_universal.c b/universal/blink_universal/blink_universal.c
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..754170919
--- /dev/null
+++ b/universal/blink_universal/blink_universal.c
@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+/**
+ * Copyright (c) 2020 Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd.
+ *
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+ */
+
+#include "pico/stdlib.h"
+#include "pico/cyw43_arch.h"
+#include "hardware/adc.h"
+
+#ifndef LED_DELAY_MS
+#define LED_DELAY_MS 250
+#endif
+
+enum BOARD_TYPE {
+    BOARD_TYPE_PICO,    // Pico-series board
+    BOARD_TYPE_PICO_W,  // Pico W-series board
+    BOARD_TYPE_UNKNOWN,
+};
+
+// Detects if PICO_VSYS_PIN is actually connected to the VSYS voltage divider,
+// to determine the board type.
+// Also checks that the LED pin is low, which should be the case for both
+// Pico-series and Pico W-series boards.
+// This will work provided that the board is being powered from VSYS (i.e. it
+// is using the onboard voltage regulator).
+// This method is documented in section 2.4 of Connecting to the Internet with
+// Raspberry Pi Pico W-series (https://pip.raspberrypi.com/documents/RP-008257-DS).
+enum BOARD_TYPE detect_board_type(void) {
+    adc_init();
+    adc_gpio_init(PICO_VSYS_PIN);
+    adc_select_input(PICO_VSYS_PIN - ADC_BASE_PIN);
+    const float conversion_factor = 3.3f / (1 << 12);
+    uint16_t result = adc_read();
+    float voltage = result * conversion_factor;
+
+    gpio_init(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN);
+    gpio_set_dir(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN, GPIO_IN);
+    bool value = gpio_get(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN);
+
+    if (value == 0 && voltage < 0.1) {
+        // Pico W-series board
+        return BOARD_TYPE_PICO_W;
+    } else if (value == 0) {
+        // Pico-series board
+        return BOARD_TYPE_PICO;
+    } else {
+        // Unknown board
+        return BOARD_TYPE_UNKNOWN;
+    }
+}
+
+// Perform initialisation
+int pico_led_init(enum BOARD_TYPE board_type) {
+    if (board_type == BOARD_TYPE_PICO_W) {
+        return cyw43_arch_init();
+    } else {
+        // A device like Pico that uses a GPIO for the LED will define PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN
+        // so we can use normal GPIO functionality to turn the led on and off
+        gpio_init(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN);
+        gpio_set_dir(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN, GPIO_OUT);
+        return PICO_OK;
+    }
+}
+
+// Turn the led on or off
+void pico_set_led(bool led_on, enum BOARD_TYPE board_type) {
+    if (board_type == BOARD_TYPE_PICO_W) {
+        cyw43_arch_gpio_put(CYW43_WL_GPIO_LED_PIN, led_on);
+    } else {
+        gpio_put(PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN, led_on);
+    }
+}
+
+int main() {
+    enum BOARD_TYPE board_type = detect_board_type();
+    int rc = pico_led_init(board_type);
+    hard_assert(rc == PICO_OK);
+    while (true) {
+        pico_set_led(true, board_type);
+        sleep_ms(LED_DELAY_MS);
+        pico_set_led(false, board_type);
+        sleep_ms(LED_DELAY_MS);
+    }
+}
diff --git a/universal/wrapper/CMakeLists.txt b/universal/wrapper/CMakeLists.txt
index 548f9310e..b5eb4839e 100644
--- a/universal/wrapper/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/universal/wrapper/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -29,6 +29,13 @@ elseif(PICO_BOARD_RP2350 AND (PICO_PLATFORM MATCHES rp2350))
     set(PICO_BOARD ${PICO_BOARD_RP2350})
 endif()
 
+# Add universal board header dir
+if (DEFINED ENV{PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS})
+    set(PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS $ENV{PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS})
+    message("Using PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS from environment ('${PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS}')")
+endif()
+set(PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS ${PICO_BOARD_HEADER_DIRS} ${CMAKE_CURRENT_LIST_DIR}/boards_universal)
+
 # Pull in SDK (must be before project)
 include(${PICO_EXAMPLES_PATH}/pico_sdk_import.cmake)
 
diff --git a/universal/wrapper/boards_universal/universal.h b/universal/wrapper/boards_universal/universal.h
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e2a2aba3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/universal/wrapper/boards_universal/universal.h
@@ -0,0 +1,170 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright (c) 2026 Raspberry Pi (Trading) Ltd.
+ *
+ * SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
+ */
+
+// -----------------------------------------------------
+// NOTE: THIS HEADER IS ALSO INCLUDED BY ASSEMBLER SO
+//       SHOULD ONLY CONSIST OF PREPROCESSOR DIRECTIVES
+// -----------------------------------------------------
+
+#ifndef _BOARDS_UNIVERSAL_H
+#define _BOARDS_UNIVERSAL_H
+
+pico_board_cmake_set(PICO_CYW43_SUPPORTED, 1)
+
+// For board detection
+#define RASPBERRYPI_UNIVERSAL
+
+// --- RP2350 VARIANT ---
+#define PICO_RP2350A 1
+
+// --- UART ---
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_UART
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_UART 0
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_UART_TX_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_UART_TX_PIN 0
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_UART_RX_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_UART_RX_PIN 1
+#endif
+
+// --- LED ---
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_LED_PIN 25
+#endif
+// no PICO_DEFAULT_WS2812_PIN
+
+// --- I2C ---
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_I2C
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_I2C 0
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_I2C_SDA_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_I2C_SDA_PIN 4
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_I2C_SCL_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_I2C_SCL_PIN 5
+#endif
+
+// --- SPI ---
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_SPI
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_SPI 0
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_SCK_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_SCK_PIN 18
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_TX_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_TX_PIN 19
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_RX_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_RX_PIN 16
+#endif
+#ifndef PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_CSN_PIN
+#define PICO_DEFAULT_SPI_CSN_PIN 17
+#endif
+
+// --- FLASH ---
+
+#define PICO_BOOT_STAGE2_CHOOSE_W25Q080 1
+
+#ifndef PICO_FLASH_SPI_CLKDIV
+#define PICO_FLASH_SPI_CLKDIV 2
+#endif
+
+pico_board_cmake_set_default(PICO_FLASH_SIZE_BYTES, (2 * 1024 * 1024))
+#ifndef PICO_FLASH_SIZE_BYTES
+#define PICO_FLASH_SIZE_BYTES (2 * 1024 * 1024)
+#endif
+// Drive high to force power supply into PWM mode (lower ripple on 3V3 at light loads)
+#define PICO_SMPS_MODE_PIN 23
+
+#ifndef PICO_RP2040_B0_SUPPORTED
+#define PICO_RP2040_B0_SUPPORTED 1
+#endif
+
+#ifndef PICO_RP2040_B1_SUPPORTED
+#define PICO_RP2040_B1_SUPPORTED 1
+#endif
+
+pico_board_cmake_set_default(PICO_RP2350_A2_SUPPORTED, 1)
+#ifndef PICO_RP2350_A2_SUPPORTED
+#define PICO_RP2350_A2_SUPPORTED 1
+#endif
+
+#ifndef CYW43_WL_GPIO_COUNT
+#define CYW43_WL_GPIO_COUNT 3
+#endif
+
+#ifndef CYW43_WL_GPIO_LED_PIN
+#define CYW43_WL_GPIO_LED_PIN 0
+#endif
+
+// Drive high to force power supply into PWM mode (lower ripple on 3V3 at light loads)
+// As this is a CYW43 pin you can do this by calling cyw43_gpio_set
+#ifndef CYW43_WL_GPIO_SMPS_PIN
+#define CYW43_WL_GPIO_SMPS_PIN 1
+#endif
+
+// If CYW43_WL_GPIO_VBUS_PIN is defined then a CYW43 GPIO has to be used to read VBUS.
+// This can be passed to cyw43_arch_gpio_get to determine if the device is battery powered.
+// PICO_VBUS_PIN and CYW43_WL_GPIO_VBUS_PIN should not both be defined.
+#ifndef CYW43_WL_GPIO_VBUS_PIN
+#define CYW43_WL_GPIO_VBUS_PIN 2
+#endif
+
+// If CYW43_USES_VSYS_PIN is defined then CYW43 uses the VSYS GPIO (defined by PICO_VSYS_PIN) for other purposes.
+// If this is the case, to use the VSYS GPIO it's necessary to ensure CYW43 is not using it.
+// This can be achieved by wrapping the use of the VSYS GPIO in cyw43_thread_enter / cyw43_thread_exit.
+#ifndef CYW43_USES_VSYS_PIN
+#define CYW43_USES_VSYS_PIN 1
+#endif
+
+// The GPIO Pin used to read VBUS to determine if the device is battery powered.
+#ifndef PICO_VBUS_PIN
+#define PICO_VBUS_PIN 24
+#endif
+
+// The GPIO Pin used to monitor VSYS. Typically you would use this with ADC.
+// There is an example in adc/read_vsys in pico-examples.
+#ifndef PICO_VSYS_PIN
+#define PICO_VSYS_PIN 29
+#endif
+
+// cyw43 SPI pins can't be changed at runtime
+#ifndef CYW43_PIN_WL_DYNAMIC
+#define CYW43_PIN_WL_DYNAMIC 0
+#endif
+
+// gpio pin to power up the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_REG_ON
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_REG_ON 23u
+#endif
+
+// gpio pin for spi data out to the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_DATA_OUT
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_DATA_OUT 24u
+#endif
+
+// gpio pin for spi data in from the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_DATA_IN
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_DATA_IN 24u
+#endif
+
+// gpio (irq) pin for the irq line from the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_HOST_WAKE
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_HOST_WAKE 24u
+#endif
+
+// gpio pin for the spi clock line to the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_CLOCK
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_CLOCK 29u
+#endif
+
+// gpio pin for the spi chip select to the cyw43 chip
+#ifndef CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_CS
+#define CYW43_DEFAULT_PIN_WL_CS 25u
+#endif
+
+#endif