ignite project silica superman closeup_1920x1280 John Brecher/Microsoft

Microsoft said its researchers stored the Warner Bros. film „Superman“ on a piece of quartz glass the size of a coaster.

The feat was a proof of concept for a years-long effort to store data in glass. The researchers used a combination of laser optics and artificial intelligence.

The glass is designed to last hundreds of years and withstand being baked, microwaved, scoured, doused in water, demagnetized, and subject to „other environmental threats.“

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Microsoft said its researchers had produced a piece of glass that is 7.5 centimeters long and 2 millimeters thick and contains the entire 1978 film „Superman.“

The feat is the culmination of years of research, made possible by recent advances in ultra-fast laser optics and artificial intelligence, Microsoft said on Monday.

Researchers used lasers to carve tiny three-dimensional etchings into the glass’s surface that could be read by machine-learning algorithms trained to look at the patterns created when a light is shined through the glass.

The research builds on other Microsoft projects that aim to store data more efficiently in the long term. A concurrent project is centered on an invention dubbed Pelican that uses cold storage to preserve dozens of disk drives, The Register reported.

Microsoft isn’t the only company exploring cutting-edge long-term storage tech. Millenniata, a startup founded in 2009, has said it developed ultra-durable DVDs that will be readable for 1,000 years.

Lab photos show the meticulous process behind Microsoft’s latest accomplishment. Take a look:

Microsoft researchers used a laser to encode Warner Bros. ‚Superman‘ on a piece of glass, and the results are striking

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