A Co-Development for the AI Age: AtlasBase and imec's Integrated Chip for DNA-Based Data Storage
July 29, 2026
Story
We’re well into the age of AI, where technical advancements are rapidly expanding into varying industries and verticals. But there’s still one caveat to all this expansion: there may not be enough storage.
In a previous story, Dr. Kavya S. Keremane, postdoctoral researcher in materials science and engineering, and Dr. Bed Poudel, research professor of materials science and engineering at Penn State University, shared their research in DNA semiconductor-based memory storage device development and fabrication for ultra-low-power next-generation memory devices.
This research sparked continued interest in exploring which other companies and areas within the industry this could expand into.
AtlasBase, formerly known as Atlas Data Storage, a biotechnology company based in San Francisco, California, is accelerating the trend of using commercial DNA sequencers for data storage to improve throughput and cut costs. The trend consists of indexing and error-correction codes (ECC) into each DNA strand.
Siraj Nour ElAhmadi, Chief Operating Officer at AtlasBase, says, “At Atlas, we started with a disturbing observation. The fact that humanity is now generating data much faster than any existing medium can keep or can affordably do so.”
Artificial Intelligence is without a doubt one of the main drivers in the vast amounts of data generated today. According to Siraj, not only is AI using a lot of data, but, at the same time, it’s continuously generating more and more data. This is something he refers to as the “binary tsunami of AI,” which is essentially the hoarding of data.
Data has become so valuable to enterprises because it’s believed that over time our ability to process and mine data will improve, so most companies don’t want to just get rid of it.
“Atlas was built on a single conviction that molecular or perhaps scientific DNA can become the permanent archival layer for the digital age. That was really the impetus, and that's our conviction,” says Siraj. “What brought me to Atlas is really this is a unique combination where we have advanced CMOS and ASIC technology, we have biochemistry, we have synthetic biology, and all coming together under one roof where you usually don't see that. And it's really a new type of substrate, a new type of product that we are developing that we believe will solve some of the pressing modern-day needs.”
This year, AtlasBase and imec, an international research & development organization of nanoelectronics and digital technologies, announced a collaboration to accelerate next-generation, permanent DNA-based data storage for AI.
Together, the companies developed an integrated chip that combines a dense nanoscale array of electrochemical cells and a control CMOS ASIC.
High-density electrode array with 128m sites. (Original image source: https://www.imec-int.com/en/press/next-generation-permanent-dna-based-data-storage-ai-age)
“Over the last 50 years, no other industry, no other technology has achieved the scale and cost reduction than the CMOS and silicon. We basically made that observation, and we married the two. We said, ‘Okay, if we want to get to scale, then we need to anchor our solution on top of CMOS.’ CMOS gives you the scale. Just to give you an example, the hybrid platform that we have today, we call Cleo, has almost 3 billion transistors. It gives us not only the scale, but the precision to control on top of that chip,” Siraj says.
The nanoscale electrochemical cell arrays developed by imec are designed to enable programmable DNA synthesis. And according to Simone Severi, Vice President of Research and Development at imec, this concept is nothing new.
“The strength of imec is actually in the scaling and in further developing materials and processes to enable scaling. This is a key element for DNA storage because both the synthesis as well as the sequencing need a very aggressively scaled chip, very dense array and very high parallelism in order to be able to bring down the overall cost of the storage device,” says Simone.
As we understood in the previous story, with Dr. Kavya S. Keremane and Dr. Bed Poudel, DNA is a breakthrough biological solution for a storage medium, however, it’s still very expensive and slow-moving when it comes to writing data onto DNA.
This is where the solution co-developed by Atlas and imec comes in. AtlasBase is leveraging its DNA synthesis technology by designing a CMOS control ASIC, and imec is utilizing its expertise in advanced chip development and providing a nanoscale electrochemical device layer designed to sit atop Atlas' ASIC.
Process of accelerating digital data storage using synthetic DNA. (Original image source: https://www.imec-int.com/en/press/next-generation-permanent-dna-based-data-storage-ai-age)
Together, this DNA storage partnership creates an integrated chip for parallel DNA synthesis. Atlas and imec are leveraging years of expertise and developing an integrated chip that can simultaneously write data onto millions of DNA strands. This is a potential solution to make DNA storage more secure and timely, and more scalable for the future.
Collaborations and research like these open new doors for the future of data storage. It's a step in the right direction to tackle the global hard disk drive (HDD) and memory shortage, especially with the increase of so many new technologies and data. In the current AI era, it's important to find solutions that make DNA storage practical at scale, working alongside the modern technologies of today to make room for the efficient and reliable storage technologies of the future.
For more in-depth information on this topic and to hear more information from AtlasBase and imec, be sure to stay tuned and check our website and YouTube for the accompanying podcast.
Tiera Oliver is the assistant managing editor at Embedded Computing Design. She is responsible for web content editing, product news, and story development. She also manages, edits, and develops content for ECD podcasts, including Embedded Insiders.
She utilizes her expertise in journalism and content management to oversee editorial content, coordinate with editors, and ensure high-quality output across web, print, and multimedia platforms. She manages diverse projects, assists in the production of digital magazines, and hosts company podcasts by conducting in-depth interviews with industry leaders to deliver engaging and insightful discussions.
Tiera attended Northern Arizona University, where she received her bachelor's in journalism and political science. She was also a news reporter for the student-led newspaper, The Lumberjack.
