A rapid and facile route allows the self-assembly of precursor micelles loaded with metal salts on an unprecedented short timescale. Micellar arrays can then be transformed into high-quality (metal or metal oxide) nanoparticle arrays. This promising route offers functionalization of surfaces by nanomaterials on industrially relevant timescales. Copyright © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.