China’s BrainCo bets on wearable brain tech
Brain-computer interfaces, a nascent technology, establishes a direct link between human minds and devices.
BrainCo
Elon Musk’s Neuralink, which uses implants in people’s heads to compensate for disabilities, has become the poster child for so-called brain-computer interfaces (BCI). But some companies are betting that mass-market neural tech won’t require opening the skull at all.
BCI works by processing brain signals and translating them into commands, allowing external devices to be controlled by thought.
Funding for startups in the field is a fraction of the capital flowing into artificial intelligence. But interest in the nascent field is rising as companies notch up milestones, such as enabling people with degenerative conditions including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) to type or play video games using brain signals.
AI is a catalyst, boosting signal-processing capabilities. Some in the industry envision a further leap one day: using the mind to control or connect with AI and robots.
The technology is raising the stakes in the U.S.-China rivalry. The Chinese government included BCI as a strategic “future industry” in its latest Five-Year Plan. Regulators recently approved what officials call the world’s first minimally invasive BCI device for commercial use, developed by Neuracle Medical Technology to regain some hand function after spinal cord injuries.
While companies including China’s StairMed and NeuroXess push ahead with implants, the non-invasive field is gaining momentum – from the Sam Altman-backed Merge Labs to China’s Gestala, both pursuing ultrasound-based approaches.
BrainCo, one of the so-called “six little dragons” of tech startups in the eastern city of Hangzhou, makes prosthetics and wearable devices using BCI technology.
Rui Ma, founder of the Tech Buzz China media and research platform, said that while today’s proven BCI applications can dramatically improve the quality of life for severely impaired patients, the far bigger market likely lies in augmenting human capabilities.
But she added: “I don’t think anyone is remotely close to realizing that … . Augmentation is like sci-fi at this point.”
A brain-tech roadmap
Founded in 2015 and born out of the Harvard Innovation Labs, BrainCo has planted its flag on the non-invasive side.
The implanted and non-invasive approaches are different paths to different problems, BrainCo partner and senior vice president Nyx He told CNBC in a recent interview. Some conditions can only be addressed by going into the brain, she said, but BrainCo believes many others – particularly where drugs fall short – can be served by non-invasive methods that are easier for people to accept and access, at lower risk and cost.
The company’s bionic hands, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, read an amputee’s neural and muscular electrical signals and translate intended movements into finger motions. Its wearables include a sleep aid that BrainCo says uses low-intensity electrical pulses…
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