An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) and method are provided for executing a memory-hard algorithm requiring reading generated data. A processor or state machine executes one or more steps of the memory-hard algorithm and requests the generated data. At least one specialized circuit is provided for generating the generated data on demand in response to a request for the generated data from the processor. Specific embodiments are applied to memory-hard cryptographic algorithms, including Ethash and Equihash.