Research has shown that brain-computer interface (BCI) technology, which allows quadriplegic patients to maneuver a pc mouse with just their thoughts, helps restore their vision. Subsequently, it’s predicted that BCI technology will achieve great success within the sight view restoration, which targets much more patients than critically unwell patients.
Bloomberg reported on the thirteenth (local time) that Science, a BCI startup founded by Max Hordak, former president of Neuralink, recently announced the outcomes of a clinical trial targeting patients with age-related macular degeneration through a recent study.
Based on this, Science applied implant technology to the 38 individuals who participated within the study by inserting the chip under the retina as a substitute of inserting it into the brain. This was safer than the prevailing brain chip method and the surgery time was as short as 80 minutes.
In consequence, 32 out of 38 people reported significant improvement in vision. On average, patients could read letters 5 lines down on a normal vision chart, with some patients identifying as many as 12 lines down.
The system, called Prima, received certification as a “breakthrough” from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last yr, a designation intended to hurry up regulatory timelines.
CEO Elon Musk’s Neuralink also has vision improvement technology through BCI. This company obtained the identical qualification as Science last September with its technology called ‘Blindsight.’ Along with these, Belgian company Revision and Spanish startup Inbrain are conducting research on this field.
After all, this method doesn’t work for people who find themselves born blind. Moreover, most relocation attempts failed and lots of firms closed down.
Nevertheless, recently, with the event of related technology, the performance of BCI has increased and gained momentum. “Fields resembling AI, materials science, surgical robotics, wireless communication technology, and microchip design have all made significant progress, and BCI can also be gaining momentum,” said Yagumur Kütlütürk, a professor at Radbous University within the Netherlands.
In reality, along with implants, Science uses glasses to capture external screens, convert them into national signals, and input them into the brain. The reason is that on this case it has a more direct effect.
The founding father of Hodak Science promised that “restoring a patient’s vision will likely be the primary killer app for brain-computer interfaces.” Thus far, the corporate has raised $150 million (about 2,100 won), and Neuralink has raised greater than $600 million (about 840 billion won).
Technology to revive vision has been around for a very long time, and specifically, efforts to enhance vision by implanting electrodes into the visual cortex have been developed because the Nineteen Seventies. Typically, after treatment, patients can see blurry flashes reasonably than clear images. Even those flashes are said to greatly improve the standard of life.
It is anticipated that it would take several more years for this technology to develop into widespread. Neuralink entered this field two years ago and is currently recruiting patients.
Reporter Lim Da-jun ydj@aitimes.com
