David Ollech is an entrepreneur with a keen interest in the rapidly advancing field of AI. This article will look at the role of AI in the development of the brain computer interface (BCI), paving the way for human machine interaction (HMI).
The convergence of AI and BCI has facilitated several significant breakthroughs, particularly in the realms of cognitive screening and emotion recognition. Over the past decade, substantial industrial progress has been achieved with computerised control and monitoring applications, further catalysing the possibility of HMI.
BCIs show huge potential as real-time bio-directional links between the human brain and actuators. AI, meanwhile, has the potential to advance the decoding and analysis of neural activity, effectively turbocharging the field of BCIs.
‘Smart’ BCIs, including sensory and motor BCIs, have been tested with notable success in clinical settings, expanding the athletic ability of normal people, improving quality of life for paralysed patients and accelerating the evolution of robotics. Nevertheless, despite technological advancements, challenges remain in terms of real-time feedback, long training periods and monitoring of BCIs.
As technology becomes increasingly advanced, the lines between humans and machines have started to blur. Once confined to the realms of science fiction, ‘mind control’ is gradually becoming a reality with the help of machines.
For an individual with a severe disability, the development of BCIs poses life-changing possibilities. BCIs are technologies designed to communicate with the central nervous system, providing a muscle-independent communication pathway for individuals with neurological diseases and injuries.
Early studies suggest that BCIs pose ‘high feasibility’ to enable paralysed patients to control personal computer mouse cursors. Integral components of such a BCI would include a computer cursor capable of interacting with the external environment, a sensor to monitor neural signals and a decoder to interpret movement intention.
A pioneering study published in 2000 demonstrated the effectiveness of an invasive BCI device operated via an electrode implanted in the outer layers of a human neocortex. The BCI decoded brainwaves, using those signals to move a cursor on a computer monitor. Studies conducted on non-human primates have revealed that cursor control BCIs are capable of achieving multidimensional neural integration with two or more degrees of freedom. In addition, experiments conducted in 2017 revealed the effectiveness of a high-performance, invasive BCI relying on two algorithms to translate signals into point-and-click commands.
Rapidly advancing from 2D to 3D controls, today’s BCI studies are increasingly moving away from models that involve moving a computer cursor on a screen to the control of physical behaviours such as bimanual arm movements, and reaching, grasping and feeding. To observe an individual with tetraplegia using a BCI-controlled robotic arm to lift a cup of coffee seemed unimaginable just a few years ago. However, thanks to this rapidly advancing technological arena, scientists are edging ever closer to achievements that once seemed unimaginable.
Despite the huge advancements in AI, the human brain remains the world’s most complex and powerful computer. Even the most sophisticated AI algorithms are only scratching the surface in terms of emulating the brain’s multifunctional activity. Nevertheless, one aspect where AI comes into its own is its speed and capability in processing mathematics and language. It is no surprise that a vast trove of scientific thought has gone into combining the human brain and AI.
Today, companies like Paradromic and Neurolink along with US and EU government agencies are leveraging new technologies to better understand the workings of the human brain. With this understanding, scientists hope to one day emulate human cognitive processes, paving the way for creation of a supercomputer, combining the multilayered complexity of the human brain with the speed, accuracy and efficiency of digital computers.
