Chinese scientists have developed a low-cost, durable flexible chip that enables powerful on-device computing for smart wearables and healthcare monitoring.
BEIJING: Chinese researchers have unveiled a new flexible chip designed to power the next generation of wearable technology.
The breakthrough, detailed in a study published in the journal Nature, enables more efficient and powerful computing directly on the body, reducing reliance on distant data centres.
A research team from Tsinghua University created the FLEXI series of chips to overcome the limitations of current wearable electronics.
Most existing wearables rely on rigid chips, which can be uncomfortable and limit functionality, while flexible alternatives often lack sufficient processing power.
The key advantage of the FLEXI chip lies in its “compute-in-memory” design, which allows calculations to happen inside the memory itself.
This approach slashes energy use and boosts speed, making it ideal for small, battery-powered devices.
Developed using a low-temperature process on flexible plastic, the chips are thin, light and cost less than USD 1 each.
They are highly durable, withstanding more than 40,000 bending cycles while maintaining stable performance for over six months.
In terms of performance, the chips reach clock speeds of up to 12.5 MHz while consuming just 2.52 mW of power.
In a real-world test, a FLEXI chip ran a neural network that analysed heart rate, breathing, temperature and skin moisture.
It identified daily activities with 97.4% accuracy, demonstrating standalone health monitoring without phones or the cloud.
“Our FLEXI platform merges high performance, ultra-low power, and strong durability,” said Professor Ren Tianling from Tsinghua University.
“It opens the door to a new class of wearable devices that are comfortable, long-lasting, and smart enough to process data on the spot.”
Ren added that the advance lays a solid hardware foundation for the future of edge AI.
This paves the way for smarter, more autonomous devices in healthcare, smart clothing and the Internet of Things.
