Indian scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, have created a groundbreaking molecular film capable of storing 16,500 memory states, marking a significant leap beyond the binary data storage used in traditional computers. This innovative technology could drastically reduce the energy and time required for mathematical operations essential to modern artificial intelligence (AI) systems.

Developed by researchers at IISc’s Centre for Nanoscience and Engineering, the molecular film is crafted from metals and organic compounds. It can store and process data in 16,500 states, a major advancement over the binary “zero” or “one” states and the maximum of 64 states achieved previously. This breakthrough has the potential to revolutionize data storage and processing, especially in AI applications.

“We’ve combined complex physics and chemistry into what we believe could be a groundbreaking technology for the next generation of AI hardware,” said Navakanta Bhat, an expert in silicon systems at IISc. Bhat and his team envision that, if developed into practical hardware systems, this technology could enable complex AI tasks, such as training large language models, to be performed on personal devices like laptops and smartphones. Currently, such tasks are mostly limited to resource-heavy data centers due to hardware limitations and energy inefficiencies.

The team’s research was published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, highlighting the potential of their innovation to make advanced AI capabilities more accessible, moving them from large data centers to everyday personal devices. This development could significantly transform AI hardware and its accessibility.