A report in China claims a hospital has launched the country’s first-in-human clinical trial of an invasive brain-computer interface (BCI).
Global Times reported that the Shanghai-based Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology (CEBSIT) at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with Fudan University’s Huashan Hospital, launched the trial earlier this year.
According to the report, the trial evaluates a high-throughput, wireless, invasive BCI device. Through minimally invasive surgery, investigators implanted the first such system in a patient with tetraplegia in late March. This patient lost all four of his limbs in a high-voltage electrical accident 13 years ago. The center reportedly said that, after a few weeks of post-operative training, the patient could control electronic devices with his mind.
Since implantation, the device remains stable in the brain with no infection or electrode failure, the report states.
According to the report, CEBSIT anticipates market entry for this BCI device by 2028. Analysts expect a massive boom in the BCI market in the coming decade, citing a $400 billion opportunity.
More about the new BCI system reportedly coming out of China
The researchers reportedly claim that the neural electrodes in this device are the smallest in size and most flexible in the world. They say the electrodes feature a cross-sectional area between a fifth and a seventh the size of the electrodes developed by potential U.S.-based BCI frontrunner Neuralink, while they are reportedly more than 100 times as flexible.
Global Times reports that the implants come in at a diameter of 26 millimeters and a thickness of less than 6 millimeters. Its flexible electrodes feature high-density, wide-ranging, high-throughput and long-term stable in vivo neural signal acquisition capabilities.
Prior validation took place through long-term implantation in rodents, non-human primates and human brains, the report says. Next, the researchers reportedly plan to attempt to let the patient in the trial use a robotic arm. They also hope to explore controlling physical peripherals like robotic dogs, embodies intelligent robots and other intelligent devices.
