Mempile

About Mempile

Mempile was an Israeli technology firm with operations in Lafayette, USA, that emerged in the mid-2000s with the ambitious goal of revolutionizing the optical storage market. The company, led by CEO Avi Huppert, was developing a next-generation optical disc technology named TeraDisc.

The core of Mempile's offering was a patented, non-linear two-photon technology that enabled three-dimensional data recording on transparent virtual layers within a DVD-sized disc. This method differed fundamentally from existing optical media, which were limited by the number of physical layers they could accommodate. Mempile's technology utilized a red laser to interact with light-sensitive chromophores in a unique photo-chromic polymer, allowing for the creation of up to 200 virtual layers. This would have enabled a storage capacity of up to one terabyte (1TB) per disc, a monumental leap from the 50GB capacity of Blu-ray discs at the time.

The company's business model was focused on the enterprise archiving market, targeting sectors with substantial data storage needs like healthcare and finance. Mempile planned to sell the recording units for approximately $2,000 to $3,000, with individual discs priced at around $40. The company collaborated with partners like the chemicals company Arkema and the disc manufacturer Memory-Tech to prepare for mass production. By 2007, Mempile had successfully demonstrated the recording and reading of over 100 virtual layers, achieving a capacity of at least 500GB, and was projecting a commercial launch around 2010. Despite these promising developments, Mempile appears to have ceased operations sometime after its 2010 target launch, as there is no public record of its products ever reaching the market. The company's former Chief Marketing Officer, Dr. Beth Erez, who held a Ph.D. in Information Science and had a background in high-tech marketing, became a full-time professional artist in 2014, suggesting the company was no longer active by that time.