You may want to take a look at the TockOS instead of Linux if you’re doing embedded dev - it’s a safer alternative to Linux for embedded devices, and generally easier to work with (though the supported hardware alternatives are not as numerous as with Yocto / linux).

I’d recommend against something like Debian for embedded work - it’s too large, and presents too much of an attack surface for most embedded project needs. And while Debian doesn’t often see critical security vulnerabilities, it does on occasion and you’d need to figure out a method for performing those upgrades on your embedded device (which wouldn’t be fun for yourself or anyone else who uses your project). Just something to keep in mind…