An AI pioneer has joined a neurotechnology startup that aims to connect computers to people’s brains via inhaled nanoparticles.
Ray Kurzweil is an AI futurist who began his career in the 1960s and has pioneered things like speech synthesis, speech recognition, optical character recognition. He is also known for his Singularity theory.
Recently, Kurzweil joined Subsense, an AI startup aiming to pursue an alternative to the brain-computer interface that Elon Musk is developing at Neuralink, with one key difference.
The company plans to use a nasal spray #
Instead of relying on surgery that implants electrodes in the brain, Subsense plan to use a nasal spray that facilitates the inhalation of charged nanoparticles. They travel to the brain through the nasal passage via the olfactory nerve, the sensory nerve responsible for smell.
Once there, the nanoparticles are positioned near neurons, where they can respond to magnetic fields created by an external headset, allowing neural activity to be stimulated without the need for surgery.
As per The Independent, Kurzweil discussed the intentions of the startup and his reason for joining. “For years, I have believed that the convergence of AI, nanotechnology and neuroscience could fundamentally change how humans interact with technology,” he said.
“Subsense is pursuing an approach that brings those fields together in a particularly compelling way,” he continued. “With the potential to move brain-computer interfaces beyond today’s surgical constraints and, over time, toward much broader applications.”
Subsense has raised $27 million to develop its technology. It has began testing on mice, but is some time away from human trials. The company hopes to tackle neurological diseases like ALS and Parkinson’s.
For more on AI, check out our coverage of the man who used a new OpenAI model to build a simulation within a simulation, or the climbers who had to be rescued after using AI to plan their hiking route.