diff --git a/synapse/build.sh b/synapse/build.sh
index 7ef2e57..4ce6067 100755
--- a/synapse/build.sh
+++ b/synapse/build.sh
@@ -22,6 +22,11 @@ function print_help() {
 
 require "$TAG" tag
 
+if ! docker run --rm -it arm64v8/ubuntu:19.10 /bin/bash -c 'echo "docker is configured correctly"'; then
+    echo "docker is not configured to run on qemu-emulated architectures, fixing will require sudo"
+    sudo docker run --rm --privileged multiarch/qemu-user-static --reset -p yes
+fi
+
 set -xe
 
 docker build \