27 March 2025 on the official Bloomberg YouTube channel. A video titled “How Biocomputing Works and Matters for AI,” was posted. I always get excited to click on anything related to biotech. So I am in it. The video explained how scientists are using living cells and DNA to create something called biocomputers. It fascinated me so much that I couldn’t stop thinking about it more.
Computers… have you ever thought about what’s inside them? They run on silicon chips that use electricity to send tiny signals 0s and 1s to make decisions. That’s how every computer works today. But these silicon chips have limits. They use a lot of energy, get hot, and can only do one thing at a time. That’s why scientists are now looking at something far more interesting, computing with life itself !.
Biocomputing is a new idea where instead of using metal chips, scientists use living cells, DNA, and molecules to perform calculations. Imagine a drop of water that can solve maths faster than your laptop. Sounds like a fairy tale, right? But it’s real. In fact, scientists have already shown that DNA can solve certain puzzles that would take a normal computer days or even years. DNA is an incredible molecule. It holds all the information that makes you, “you”. It’s small but can store massive amounts of data. One gram of DNA can store billions of gigabytes.
What truly amazing is how efficient this can be. Think about your brain. It only uses the energy of a small light bulb, yet it can recognise faces, make decisions, and learn from mistakes. Supercomputers can’t do that, even though they use thousands of watts of energy. Biocomputers aim to work like our brains. They don’t just process information.They learn, adapt, and even repair themselves. And this is where Artificial Intelligence, or AI, comes in.
AI is the technology that helps machines think and learn. It’s what drives robots, chatbots, and smart tools. But AI today still runs on traditional computers, which means it’s limited by how fast and how much energy those machines can handle. That’s where biocomputing could change everything. If AI runs on living cells instead of chips, it could think faster, learn naturally, and use much less energy. That means better healthcare, smarter cities, and faster discoveries.
Here’s what biocomputing can offer AI and the world
- Energy Efficiency: Biocomputers use very little energy, like living cells
- Self-Healing: If part of it breaks, cells can repair themselves naturally
- Parallel Processing: Cells can solve many problems at once
- Learning from Nature: They can adapt to new situations automatically
- Tiny but Informative: A small biocomputer can store a huge amount of data
- Eco-Friendly: It doesn’t waste energy or release heat like normal computers
- Smarter AI: It can learn like humans through experience and adaptation
Isn’t that amazing? It’s like combining the brain of a human with the impact of a machine. Biocomputing could give AI the ability to grow and learn in ways we’ve never seen before. Traditional computers just follow instructions. They don’t really understand things. But biocomputers can change that. They can adapt and evolve like living organisms.
Now imagine what this means in real life. In hospitals, biocomputers could read a person’s DNA in seconds and help doctors find diseases before they even start. In schools, they could help students learn faster by analysing how their brains work. Scientists could use biocomputers to test medicines without waiting for months. Even nature could benefit. Tiny living biocomputers immediately could detect pollution in rivers and send signals when it’s unsafe.
AI and biocomputing together could make our world healthier, smarter, and more connected. It’s like giving AI a living brain, one that grows, learns, and adapts. That’s something no silicon chip can ever do. When this happens, we might see robots that care for people like real nurses or computers that write…that truly connect with emotion.
Of course, there are challenges too. Biocomputing uses living cells, so scientists must handle it responsibly. It’s not just about building new technology. It’s about protecting life. Researchers must make sure that these systems don’t harm the environment or people. They also need to follow ethical rules, ensuring that DNA and living cells are used safely and respectfully. Innovation should always come with care.
Our bodies are made of billions of cells that communicate, repair, and adapt perfectly. Nature already computes. We’re just learning how to understand it. When we copy those biological systems, we’re not trying to replace life. We’re learning from it.
If you’re someone who loves science or technology, this is the most exciting time to be alive. Probably the future won’t just be about coding and circuits. It’ll be about combining biology, chemistry, and AI to create living technology. Maybe one day, you’ll help build a computer made of DNA that thinks and grows. The scientists of tomorrow won’t just write code. They’ll design living systems that learn from the world around them.
Biocomputing is still new, but it’s moving fast. Every experiment brings us closer to a time when computers don’t just calculate. They evolve. I think that’s what fascinated me most when I watched that Bloomberg video. It wasn’t just science. It was an imagination turning into reality. The future of AI won’t just depend on electricity or data. It will depend on life itself.
And that’s why I believe biocomputing could change the future of AI.