Scientists gave instructions to robot with human brain cells in a world's first

A group of scientists have wired a robot with human stem cells and attached a brain-computer interface, enabling the robot to complete tasks assigned to it.

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"Demonstration diagrams of future application scenarios"

Human brains, much like computers, run on electrical signals that are fired from our neurons. Every single movement, thought, and aspect of the human body is run by electrical signals firing from the brain. Due to the similarities with computers, engineers have designed brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) that can monitor and respond to the electrical signals fired by neurons. Elon Musk's brain chip company Neuralink has achieved this with Nolan Arbaugh, a paraplegic individual who can now control a computer mouse cursor with his thoughts.

Now, a team of researchers from Tianjin University and the Southern University of Science and Technology connected brain tissue to a neural interface, which enables the robot to theoretically train itself by analyzing the electrical signals provided to it. This would give the robot a version of "sight" as it would be able to interpret the world through electrical signals. The team suggests the BCI could lead to robotics training themselves on avoiding obstacles, using hands and arms, and more.

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Wetware

"[This] is a technology that uses an in-vitro cultured 'brain' - such as brain organoids - coupled with an electrode chip to form a brain-on-chip," which encodes and decodes stimulation feedback, Ming Dong, vice-president of Tianjin University, told state-owned Science and Technology Daily on Tuesday, per the SCMP

It shouldn't be understated how impressive this biocomputing or "wetware" is. Humanity is really taking its own organics and now growing them on computer chips, creating what will be the foundation of the first cyborg brain - a brain grown with electronics integrated into it.

"Brain organoid transplants are considered a promising strategy for restoring brain function by replacing lost neurons and reconstructing neural circuits," the team wrote