Brain-machine interface: the potential of cutting-edge neuroscience to control machines with thought

In the future, the brain will be connected to AI!? This science fiction fantasy technology, "Brain Machine Interface (BMI)," is actually being researched in various countries around the world, and several companies in Japan are also conducting research and development. What are the methods of BMI and what will it bring?

Have you heard of the technology called "Brain Machine Interface," commonly known as BMI? BMI is a general term for the entity that connects the "brain," which is the signal source and the object of operation, with the "machine," such as an EEG sensor that reads brainwaves and a program that analyzes brainwaves. In simple terms, it is a technology that connects the brain and machines.

For example, it supports the foundation of technology that moves a robot arm just by thinking, and is considered to be a part of BrainTech in a broad sense. Although it is a science fiction fantasy technology, research on man-machine interfaces such as BMI began around the 1970s, so the idea itself seems to have existed for a surprisingly long time.

It is said that external devices were not actually implanted into the human body until the mid-1990s. In the 21st century, there was an increase in cases of implanting BMI devices into humans, such as artificial sensory devices that assist vision and hearing, and prosthetic arms and legs that operate by motors, although their functions are insufficient.

BMI is also being researched and developed in countries around the world. For example, in the United States in 2013, the "Brain Initiative," a huge project to promote neuroscience, was announced during the Obama administration, and major companies and startups, mainly in Silicon Valley, entered the market one after another.

In fact, major company Microsoft has obtained a patent for technology that allows apps to be operated by thinking with the brain. In addition, Neuralink, founded by Tesla founder Elon Musk, has begun clinical trials of a service that allows electronic devices to be operated by thinking with the brain.

In Israel, Israel Brain Technologies (IBT) was established during the presidency of Shimon Peres, and many brain tech projects are still ongoing. IBT holds conferences every two years, attracting many startups, investors, and government officials from all over the world.

IBT also actively engages in activities to provide funding for businesses that utilize brain tech and supports startups, and with the support of IBT, more than 100 startups in Israel are working on projects.

In the EU, a project called the "Human Brain Project" is underway to understand the mechanisms of the brain, with a budget of about 1 billion euros over a 10-year period from 2013, and the project focuses on elucidating the full extent of the brain and simulating it.

In China, a 15-year nationally funded research project called the "China Brain Project" has been underway since 2016, and in South Korea, a project called the "Korea Brain Initiative" was launched in 2016 as a research project in the field of brain science.