In future DNA won’t just control human evolution but computer evolution also, if IBM is able to use DNA in development of next-generation microchips. With ever decreasing size of computer chips, IBM is looking at Artificial DNA nanostructures, or “DNA origami” in hope that it may provide a cheap framework on which to build tiny microchips.

“This is the first demonstration of using biological molecules to help with processing in the semiconductor industry,” IBM research manager Spike Narayan said to Reuters. “Basically, this is telling us that biological structures like DNA actually offer some very reproducible, repetitive kinds of patterns that we can actually leverage in semiconductor processes.”

Narayan further added that the tinier the chip, the more expensive the equipment, if the DNA origami process scales to production level, manufacturers could trade hundreds of millions of dollars in complex equipments for less than a million dollars of polymers, DNA solutions, and heating implements. Narayan believes that it could take at least 10 years for actual product to come to the market, as the new technique needs years of experimentation and testing.