In an exciting development out of Shanghai, a team of Chinese researchers and clinical neurologists have unveiled a revolutionary brain-computer interface (BCI) technology. This breakthrough enables 10 individuals to communicate fluent Chinese sentences using only their thoughts, offering a fresh ray of hope for patients affected by strokes and other speech impairments.
The innovative system, developed in collaboration between Shanghai-based startup INSIDE and Huashan Hospital affiliated with Fudan University, involves implanting electrodes in patients with epilepsy. In an average training session of just 100 minutes, the intelligent platform mastered decoding brain signals associated with 54 Chinese characters in real-time. This training laid the foundation for interpreting up to 1,951 common words, allowing the system to generate complete Chinese sentences in under half a second—mind-blowing, right? ⚡
Li Meng, INSIDE's chief scientist, highlighted the uniqueness of the challenge: "Unlike English's basic phonemes, Mandarin involves over 400 nuanced syllables." This complexity makes the achievement even more remarkable, paving the way for future applications such as smart environment controls and even creative artwork generation through AI.
Early clinical trials have already produced inspiring outcomes. In August 2024, a 21-year-old female patient with epilepsy engaged in table tennis and snake computer games using a 256-channel flexible BCI device designed by Shanghai-based NeuroXess. Another trial saw a resilient individual, who lost all four limbs in a high-voltage accident 13 years ago, playing chess and racing games purely with his mind.
Looking ahead, Shanghai is building BCI incubators and nurturing an innovation ecosystem to fully integrate brain control technology into clinical applications by 2030. This breakthrough not only heralds a new era in neuroscience and AI but also inspires a vision of a future where technology and human potential merge seamlessly.
Reference(s):
Shanghai BCI breakthrough translates thoughts into fluent Chinese
cgtn.com
