Robotic Revolution: Neural Chip and Stem Cell Brain Alliance

Are we heading towards a new generation of advanced robots with real minds? That’s what recent progress by Chinese scientists suggests. Researchers from Tianjin University and the Southern University of Science and Technology have created a robot with a “Brain on a chip“It combines an organic brain with a neural interface chip.

New advances in direct neural interfaces

The brain, created in a laboratory, is designed from human stem cells (generally extracted from embryos). Thanks to this new technology derived from Direct Neural Interfaces (IND, or BCI for Brain computer interfaces), which encodes and decodes feedback from stimuli, scientists want to teach the robot to perform certain actions, such as avoiding obstacles or grabbing objects.

According to Tianjin University, it “The world's first open source complex and intelligent information interaction system with a brain on a chip.“According to the university, this advance could lead to the development of hybrid human-robot intelligence. Between this advance and that of Neuralink and its brain implants, the coming years are likely to be crucial in this field.

Ultrasound-based breakthrough in brain transplantation

The team also says progress has been made in transplanting human brain organoids into a living brain. Although this technology is considered the most promising model for restoring function in damaged brains, it still faces barriers, in particular low developmental maturity and insufficient nutrient intake.

However, using a technique based on low-intensity ultrasound diffusion, the grafted elements form a better network with the host brain. This technique could also lead to new therapies for treating neurodevelopmental disorders and repairing damage to the cerebral cortex.