Neuralink is the next-generation interface between humans and machines

 

Neuralink is one of the companies working on the next generation interface between humans and machines. Unlike most researchers working on technology that seems viable, the announcement from this company is not like this. Instead of the standard voice, keyboard, controller, etc. Neuralink works on a direct connection from the brain to the machines.

To this end, the company supported by the founder of Space X and Tesla, Elon Musk, is working on a new chip. This chip will connect to the brain and will be a direct link between the machine and the human. This technology via "USB-cable" will not only allow control of the machines but will also enable the improvement of some senses through external sensors.

According to Mr Mask, this technology can be used to increase the range of frequencies and amplitudes we hear. What is probably super interesting is that next week, on August 28, there will be an official presentation and we can find out more about the Neuralink chip.

Some of the announcements we heard from Mr Masks look amazing. One example is the ability to stream music directly to the brain, but also to use the chip to regulate hormones or control stress. Initially, the chip should help people with Parkinson's disease. In the long run, it should provide a direct link between humans and artificial intelligence.

Progress in the development of materials

A group of scientists from Lehigh University recently discovered a new material that has the potential to be used as an "electronic" brain. The work of the university should show the potential of functionalization of 2D materials and organic molecule.

"Neuromorphic materials have a combination of computational memory properties and energy efficiency for brain-like applications," said Cinedu Ekuma, who led the study.

Another study conducted at the University of Delaware found that materials could be used to connect tissue to electrodes without damaging the brain. The polymer, known as "PEDOT", can cover electronics with human tissue without causing scarring and damage, and at the same time will improve the performance of medical implants, writes Independent.

The polymer could help the Neuralink team integrate artificial intelligence with the human brain. Due to its ability to penetrate porous materials and electrical conductivity, the Ped can also be used as a material to transform standard building bricks into batteries.

Neuralink looks far away, what interface is followed between humans and machines?

While we're expecting more Neuralink data this month, it's hard to believe we can expect this interface anytime soon. It will probably take years of testing for additional safety tests before the technology becomes more widely available to users.

What does technology look like right now? Most users use one or a combination of these three interfaces: keyboard, mouse, and touch screens. The three are now quite common and standard. One of the newer, and interface we're probably not quite used to yet is the voice interface.

Certainly the introduction of several devices, from virtual assistants to smart home management devices. Google Assistant, Siri, Cortana, Alexa help us get used to it. This could be an interface that we will start to use a lot more with the advancement of the internet of things.

The potential of gestures is present, and in the past, we have seen interesting concepts, which unfortunately did not achieve their goal. We could see the potential of Kinect as a combination of voice commands and gestures in our country, with the example of Kinect Arcade. Nearly 10 years ago, four software engineers from Netcetera developed a WPF application that included a navigation system and several games. The potential was here, but Microsoft surprisingly gave up on Kinect.

Gestures are present in some generations of Samsung smart TVs. In this case, the users can control the TV with hand gestures. Unfortunately, not all applications come with gesture management support, which limits their usability a bit.

Unfortunately, some of the solutions that in the past seemed like a great replacement for today's mouse and keyboard did not turn out. One such device was the Leap Motion. The additional controller came with a bunch of gestures as well as the ability to model but failed to convince users of its usability. Instead, Leap Motion is forgotten today.

Next week Neuralink will share new information about the device and this will probably be super interesting. Probably the announcements of Mr Musk are too amazing to believe they are possible in the foreseeable future, but this is certainly an interesting event. If nothing else, we will at least find out in which direction and to what extent the chip on which Neuralink works.

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