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The refurbished railway station in London I entered last week had none of the usual signs of being a tattoo studio. The walls were devoid of any art, and there were no reclining chairs or massage tables in the room. The only tattoo gun on the premises sat in a display case instead of buzzing in someone’s gloved hand. I felt like I was getting inked in a half-assembled biolab with some interesting benefits.
I’m not trying to put on a show of bravado when I say my latest tattoo didn’t hurt. Getting the small sparkle lineart permanently marked on my skin was a genuinely painless experience. It was over in seconds, and didn’t involve any grisly needles — at least, not in the traditional sense.
It was applied by CipherX, a London-based biotech company that’s developed disposable “Microdot” patches that provide an alternative form of permanent tattooing. Each patch is roughly the size of a US quarter and uses microscopic, biodegradable needles to deposit pigment into the upper layers of the skin. The process is designed to be “quiet, fast, and pain-free,” all of which I found to be true, opening the door for even more people to rock some permanent ink.
CipherX set up this rotating display, and I had to really squint to see the microneedles on the tattoo patches. Here’s a closer look at the microneedles, viewed using a live microscope video feed.
Some cosmetic products already use a similar technology, and microneedle tattoo patches have been explored since at least 2022, but CipherX appears to be the first to turn that latter concept into a consumer-ready product. My Verge colleagues have previously put their bodies on the line in the name of testing technology, and I was more than happy to offer up my flesh.
The application itself was actually faster than I expected. After choosing my design — a “Bold Sparkle,” now widely associated with AI iconography — CipherX CEO Ferdinand Kohle placed an ink-coated transparent guide disc on my arm to indicate where it would be applied. He then lined up the seemingly 3D-printed applicator with the ink guidelines, pressed a button, and removed it to reveal the Microdot patch affixed to my arm, embedding 112 microneedles into my skin.
Applying the Microdot patch took a few seconds, and I barely felt anything.
A flexible tattoo bandage was applied to prevent it from moving around, and a branded plastic sticker was placed over that — presumably for marketing as Kohle admitted that part wasn’t necessary. The final step involved waiting 15 minutes for it to process, and I was free to move around during that time.
I was warned that I might feel a slight “flicking” sensation as the applicator was pressed, but I barely noticed a thing. It felt more like someone had lightly touched my arm with their finger. I wouldn’t even describe the sensation as uncomfortable, let alone painful. It’s also worth mentioning that I have sensitive skin and bleed very easily, but I didn’t experience any bleeding or irritation from the microneedles. There was no scabbing or healing time at all, unlike my other tattoos.
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