Brainwave

“Brainwave” – a cartoon that illustrates how brain-computer interface (BCI) technology may not be completely dystopian and has the potential to improve the lives of many.

BCI reads the brain signals of users and transmits translated commands into electronic devices, for example moving a robotic arm by having the brain concentrate on a particular stimuli or imagine various body movements.

The best known company in the market is Elon Musk’s Neuralink, which has developed an implantable BCI designed to allow humans to control external devices with their thoughts.

One of its first goals is to help restore autonomy for paralysis patients — and just last month, the company announced its first implant in a human brain.

More broadly, BCI can be used to address healthcare issues where chronic disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disorders that primarily afflict geriatric patients could be remedied or at least delay the onset.

As with most technologies, there are plenty of applications that are equally disconcerting such as military applications and video gaming.

However, Elon believes BCI actually puts the humans back in control and avoids the “AI civilizational risk by improving human to AI (and human to human) bandwidth by several orders of magnitude.”

So, don’t worry, adding a chip into your brain will ensure you are not wiped out by another chip.