An Australian startup has introduced a groundbreaking biological computer powered by human brain cells, marking a significant advancement in AI and robotics. Cortical Labs, based in Melbourne, unveiled the CL1 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, presenting it as a “body in a box” that has the potential to reshape the future of computing.  

 

The CL1 integrates lab-grown neurons with a silicon chip, enabling them to send and receive electrical impulses. This biological system is controlled by Cortical Labs’s Biological Intelligence Operating System (biOS), which allows users to execute code through the neurons to perform computing tasks. To keep the neurons alive, the system is equipped with an internal life support mechanism consisting of pumps, gas, and temperature controls, sustaining them for up to six months. “A simple way to describe it would be like a body in a box,” said Brett Kagan, chief scientific officer of Cortical Labs.  

 

Unlike traditional silicon-based computers, this biological computing system can learn and adapt more efficiently while consuming significantly less energy. A previous iteration of the technology, which featured 800,000 human and mouse neurons on a chip, demonstrated its capabilities by teaching itself to play the video game Pong. A study published in *Cell* reported that the neurons not only learned the game but also exhibited a form of sentience when placed within the simulated gaming environment.  

 

The company has addressed ethical concerns regarding consciousness and sentience, stating that guardrails have been implemented, though specific details remain undisclosed. “The neuron is self-programming, infinitely flexible, and the result of four billion years of evolution,” Cortical Labs states on its website. “Our technology merges biology with traditional computing to create the ultimate learning machine... Unlike traditional AI, our neural systems require minimal energy and training data to master complex tasks.”  

 

The first batch of CL1 computers is set to ship in June, with each unit priced at approximately $35,000 (£27,000). Dr. Hon Weng Chong, founder and CEO of Cortical Labs, emphasized the significance of the launch, stating, “Today is the culmination of a vision that has powered Cortical Labs for almost six years. Our long-term mission has been to democratize this technology, making it accessible to researchers without specialized hardware and software. The CL1 is the realization of that mission.”  

 

Looking ahead, Dr. Chong highlighted the broader impact of the technology, emphasizing that the true potential of CL1 lies in the innovations that researchers, academics, and developers will build upon it. “While today’s announcement is incredibly exciting, it’s the foundation for the next stage of innovation. The real impact and the real implications will come from every researcher, academic, or innovator that builds on top of it,” he said.

 

Based on a report by The Independent  2025-03-08

 

 

Interesting but a bit sickening.

10 hours ago, Social Media said:

The CL1 integrates lab-grown neurons with a silicon chip

Movie idea: neurons sourced from a sociopath

Life imitating art.

 

 

 

 

The film that fueled a 1000 conspiracies and weaponised Care-in-the-community.

3 minutes ago, MicroB said:

weaponised Care-in-the-community.

 

I don't get that  can you explain please   how the Matrix  film

"weaponised Care-in-the-community"

21 minutes ago, johng said:

 

I don't get that  can you explain please   how the Matrix  film

"weaponised Care-in-the-community"

 

 

"Care in the Community" is a euphemism. It refers to when the UK government started closing psychiatric wards and hospitals, claiming people with mental illness could be better treated in the community, car in the community, than in hospital. Of course many were, and were already being treated in the community. But it lead to many more people who were a danger to themselves and others, being on the proverbial street. The film gave legitimacy and validation to many paranoias, as have some some subsequent real events shown.

 

Its forgotten that the film, not long after, inspired a couple of deranged kids to live out a fantasy, that they were living in an imaginary world, donned some leather coats and went on a machine gun rampage at their school.

 

The Cortical Labs PR has a whiff of Theronostics about it. Neuron-based computing is not that new, but its still quite conceptual Cortical Labs could have selected other animal models; they could have selected fly (drosophila) neurons for instance, if all they wanted to do is create a biological computer consisting of billions of on-off switches. But that didn't pay the bills.

 

The main application of cultured human neuron cells, or an organoid, is in drug research, primarily toxicology testing, as an alternative to animal testing. But also  such models can be used to study drug candidates, but even that is a huge way from progressing a drug molecule from neuron cell to patient. Virtually all drug candidates for Alzheimers have failed. There is no cure, but as expected, research is showing etiology to be complex, and eventually a treatment might be nothing to do with neurons.

 

Human cells were picked because the major application is drug research. If I was selecting a cell line to build an actual computer for an industrial application, I wouldn't pick human cells, or even a mammal cell. Shark neurons are just as functional, but offer greater practical applcation due to the physiological conditions of the shark body (lower temperature, different osmality).

 

I think this PR is just an investment raising wheeze in an era when suddenly there is huge amounts of VC cash sloshng around.

 

Theronostics was a company that claimed to have a diagnostic tool that could perform complex clinical tests on capillary blood. Capillary blood is finger prick blood. The business case was for consumers to walk into a pharmacy, and get all their bloods done while they waiting, empowering their involvement in their own healthcare. It was a terrific concept, and Walgreens saw a huge opportunity to cut out the hospitals, and save people lots of money. The company also had this apparent genius from England who had designed a nifty machne that apparently could do it.

 

Only the machine didn't work. It did have some interesting technologies in it, when I assessed it, but some fundemental flaws. The company carried out fake testing, by buying in actual lab equipment, to try and fool the investors. The inventor was under so much pressure to get this device to work he killed himself. Elizabeth Holmes was the PhD dropout CEO with the strange deep voice (which was put on), a sort of tech "sis". She's now doing 11 years for fraud.

 

Next stop, the Matrix. Perhaps we could use all the ex government drones to power people's toasters, which would likely be the first useful thing they did since opting to "work" for the government.

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Next stop, the Matrix. Perhaps we could use all the ex government drones to power people's toasters, which would likely be the first useful thing they did since opting to "work" for the government.

 

The device is really about drug testing. The alternative is to continue to test dementia drugs in mice then cross fingers they work/don't kill us in human brains, whch is why the pipeline is failing. You don't need human neuron cells to build a biological computer.

 

So when do they start sending soldiers in uniform their demob suits?

AI, using human brain?

Something like this?

 

 

Reminds me of Captain Future, old time Sci-Fi story.

Brain of Prof. Simon encased, and lived on, after his physical death.

 

 

Guess the "Box" is less unsettling.