The Lab Mistake That Might Revolutionize Computing

IEEE Spectrum · 2 months ago · 10

Researchers discovered that a standard MOSFET transistor, when its bulk terminal is left floating rather than grounded, exhibits neuron-like behavior by producing sudden current spikes followed by relaxation, potentially enabling more energy-efficient AI hardware. The accidental discovery occurred in 2024 when a student forgot to connect the bulk terminal while measuring a memory circuit, revealing current spiking with nonlinear properties similar to biological neurons. If this single-device approach can be reliably manufactured and scaled, it could replace the dozens or hundreds of transistors currently needed to simulate each artificial neuron, reducing the enormous energy consumption of AI data centers.