Mushrooms Could Power the Computers of Tomorrow: How Shiitake Fungi Are Being Used as Memory Chips

A group of researchers from The Ohio State University has made a discovery that sounds straight out of science fiction — they’ve managed to turn shiitake mushrooms into functional memory chips. These fungal-based components, known as organic memristors, can remember electrical states, just like the semiconductor chips found in computers today. Even more interesting, they’re biodegradable, cheaper to produce, and could pave the way for a new generation of eco-friendly computing systems.

Let’s break down exactly what this means, how it works, and why it matters.

What Exactly Did the Researchers Do?

The study, published in PLOS One in October 2025, explored how common edible mushrooms, particularly shiitake and button mushrooms, could be trained to act as memristors — electronic components that retain memory of past electrical activity. These are key elements in neuromorphic computing, which aims to mimic the way human brains process information.

The research was led by John LaRocco, a research scientist in psychiatry at Ohio State’s College of Medicine, along with Qudsia Tahmina, an associate professor in electrical and computer engineering. Together with their team, they set out to see whether living or preserved fungal materials could perform the same function as inorganic microchips.

To do this, the team cultured mushrooms under controlled conditions. Once mature, the mushrooms were dehydrated — this ensured long-term stability — and connected to special electrical circuits using wires and probes. The researchers applied different voltages and frequencies to various parts of each mushroom. Since distinct parts of a mushroom have different electrical properties, the team could measure how well the fungi responded to electrical signals.

Over a period of two months, the researchers observed how these fungal structures reacted when used as RAM-like memory devices. The results were surprisingly promising: the mushroom-based memristor could switch between electrical states at speeds of up to 5,850 signals per second, maintaining around 90% accuracy. That’s fast enough for basic memory operations in a simple computing context.

However, performance began to drop when higher-frequency voltages were applied. Interestingly, connecting multiple mushrooms together in a circuit helped to counter this issue — much like adding more neurons to a brain network strengthens processing power.

Why Use Mushrooms for Computing?

This research falls under the emerging field of bioelectronics, where scientists explore how living or biological materials can be integrated into electronic systems. Using fungi for computing isn’t completely new — previous experiments have tried to use mycelium networks (the root-like structure of fungi) for computing purposes. But the Ohio State team has taken the idea further by pushing these memristive systems to their operational limits.

Mushrooms are ideal candidates because of their unique structure and resilience. The mycelium — a dense network of microscopic filaments — naturally forms interconnected pathways that can conduct and modulate electricity. Think of it as a biological circuit board, where electrical impulses travel across organic “wires.”

Beyond their structural advantages, mushrooms offer strong environmental benefits. Traditional computer chips rely on rare-earth minerals, toxic chemicals, and energy-intensive manufacturing. Fungal materials, on the other hand, are renewable, biodegradable, and cost-effective. They can even be grown in local facilities or, as one researcher noted, “as small as a compost heap.”

In short, mushrooms could help reduce electronic waste and the carbon footprint associated with large-scale chip manufacturing. For an industry that consumes massive amounts of energy — especially in global data centers — this kind of sustainable solution could be a game-changer.

What Is a Memristor?

To understand why this is such a big deal, it helps to know what a memristor is.

A memristor (short for “memory resistor”) is a type of electrical component that remembers how much current has passed through it, even after power is turned off. This makes it a perfect building block for neuromorphic computing, where circuits behave more like human neurons — remembering, adapting, and learning based on experience.

Traditional memristors are made from metal oxides or other semiconductor materials. But the idea of organic memristors, built from biological matter, is gaining traction because they offer flexibility, sustainability, and potential cost savings. In this case, the shiitake’s natural structure behaves in a way similar to these advanced materials, storing information as changes in electrical resistance.

How Did the Mushroom Chips Perform?

The researchers’ tests revealed several fascinating findings:

• The mushroom-based memristors successfully stored and recalled electrical states with about 90% accuracy.
• The devices could operate at frequencies up to 5,850 hertz, meaning they could process thousands of signals per second.
• When performance dropped at higher frequencies, adding more mushrooms to the network improved signal stability and performance.
• The dehydrated fungi remained functional, meaning the devices didn’t require living tissue to work — a major advantage for real-world applications.

Even though their performance doesn’t yet match the speed or density of silicon-based chips, the study proves that fungal materials can act as reliable data processors.

Potential Applications and Future Directions

The implications of this study reach far beyond novelty. If further developed, fungal-based electronics could find use in areas such as:

• Edge computing, where small, low-power devices process data locally rather than relying on large data centers.
• Aerospace technology, since shiitake mushrooms are known to have radiation-resistant properties — useful for space environments.
• Wearable electronics and biodegradable sensors, where sustainability and flexibility are essential.
• Brain-inspired computing, where the goal is to mimic human neural systems in an energy-efficient way.

Researchers believe that scaling up these systems could eventually lead to networks of fungal computers, where interconnected mycelium-based devices perform parallel computations, much like neural networks in artificial intelligence.

Still, there are hurdles ahead. The current devices are too large to compete with commercial microchips, and miniaturization will be key. The production process also needs to be optimized to ensure consistency, reliability, and integration with modern electronics.

Why Sustainability Matters in Computing

Our world increasingly depends on computing infrastructure — from smartphones to AI servers — and that comes at a steep environmental cost. The semiconductor industry is one of the most resource-intensive sectors on the planet. Manufacturing chips requires vast amounts of water, energy, and rare minerals such as tantalum and cobalt. The resulting e-waste often ends up in landfills, where toxic materials can leak into ecosystems.

That’s why bioelectronics and green computing are becoming hot research areas. Scientists are experimenting with bacteria, algae, and fungi to create materials that can process information while being environmentally friendly. The idea isn’t to replace all traditional electronics but to find ways to complement them with sustainable alternatives.

The fungal memristor project is one example of how biology and technology can intersect to solve pressing global problems. If perfected, these devices could significantly reduce energy consumption, lower production costs, and lessen environmental impact — while adding a fascinating biological twist to the world of computing.

The Road Ahead

The Ohio State University team has shown that even something as humble as a shiitake mushroom can play a role in shaping the future of computing. While the research is still in its early stages, it represents a powerful proof of concept. Future work will focus on improving cultivation methods, miniaturizing the components, and exploring long-term durability.

It’s not hard to imagine a future where biodegradable electronics grow instead of being manufactured — a world where technology literally sprouts from nature. And while that might sound futuristic, the first steps are already here, growing quietly in a lab, powered by mushrooms.

Research Reference:
LaRocco, J., Tahmina, Q., Petreaca, R., Simonis, J., & Hill, J. (2025). Sustainable memristors from shiitake mycelium for high-frequency bioelectronics. PLOS One.