Encoding adaptive intelligence in molecular matter by design

For more than 50 years, scientists have sought alternatives to silicon for building molecular electronics. The vision was elegant; the reality proved far more complex. Within a device, molecules behave not as orderly textbook entities but as densely interacting systems where electrons flow, ions redistribute, interfaces evolve, and even subtle structural variations can induce strongly nonlinear responses. The promise was compelling, yet predictive control remained elusive.