biostudies-literatureUnknown11(37)Li JDNA with high storage density can serve as an alternative storage medium to respond to the global explosion of data growth and become a powerful personal storage memory if an integrated compact device can store and handle large-scale data. Here, we incorporate a DNA cassette tape with 5.5 × 10⁵ addressable data partitions (addressing rate up to 1570 partitions per second), a DNA loading capacity of 28.6 mg per kilometer, and deposit-many-recover-many (DMRM) features per partition to flexibly manage large-scale storage data and achieve hundreds of years of data preservation. We develop a compact DNA cassette tape drive and verify its functionality by randomly depositing incomplete images into the data partition, demonstrating a completely automated closed-loop operation involving addressing, recovery, removal, subsequent file deposition, and file recovery again, all accomplished within 50 min. Last, the complete image is restored by next-generation sequencing and decoding. DNA cassette tape provides a strategy for fast, compact, large-scale DNA-based cold or warm data storage.Science advanceseady3406https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC12422178biostudies-literatureA compact cassette tape for DNA-based data storage.PMC12422178Li XLi JMao CShao JWang RWang SWang DJiang XZheng SLuo XFan CfalseA compact cassette tape for DNA-based data storage.DNA with high storage density can serve as an alternative storage medium to respond to the global explosion of data growth and become a powerful personal storage memory if an integrated compact device can store and handle large-scale data. Here, we incorporate a DNA cassette tape with 5.5 × 10⁵ addressable data partitions (addressing rate up to 1570 partitions per second), a DNA loading capacity of 28.6 mg per kilometer, and deposit-many-recover-many (DMRM) features per partition to flexibly manage large-scale storage data and achieve hundreds of years of data preservation. We develop a compact DNA cassette tape drive and verify its functionality by randomly depositing incomplete images into the data partition, demonstrating a completely automated closed-loop operation involving addressing, recovery, removal, subsequent file deposition, and file recovery again, all accomplished within 50 min. Last, the complete image is restored by next-generation sequencing and decoding. DNA cassette tape provides a strategy for fast, compact, large-scale DNA-based cold or warm data storage.2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Sep2026-06-02T20:26:22.607Z2026-04-20T03:10:10.837ZS-EPMC124221784092926310.1126/sciadv.ady3406