A breakthrough in brain-inspired electronics could lead to devices that process information and learn without relying on conventional computing architectures.

A single nanoscale electronic component can perform three different jobs, switching electrical current, storing information through resistance, and remembering past electrical activity through changes in capacitance. Researchers in Germany have demonstrated this versatility using unusual oxide materials, opening a possible path toward computer hardware that processes information and adapts more like the human brain.

Today’s artificial intelligence systems can consume enormous amounts of electricity, particularly during the training of large models. One reason researchers are exploring alternative hardware is that conventional computers typically separate memory from computation, requiring information to move between them. The brain operates differently. Its neurons communicate through synapses, connections that can change in response to repeated or intense signals. This ability to adapt, known as neuroplasticity, helps the brain learn from experience.