Thursday, OpenAI announcement its investment in a neurotechnology startup Merge laboratoriesco-founded by its billionaire CEO Sam Altman. OpenAI will collaborate with the new company to develop technology to connect people’s brains to computers.
Merge Labs has raised $252 million from OpenAI, private investment firm Bain Capital, video game developer Gabe Newell and others to use ultrasound to read and modulate the brain.
Merge joins a growing number of companies, including Elon Musk’s Neurablewhich are developing brain-computer interface technology. Its name comes from Silicon Valley’s concept of “merger,” the hypothetical point at which humans and artificial intelligence combine to form a hybrid consciousness, which is what Altman imagined. writing about. Altman has already invested in Musk’s Neuralink, which raised $1.3 billion.
Unlike Neuralink, Merge says it will not implant its technology in the brain. “We are developing entirely new technologies that connect to neurons using molecules instead of electrodes, transmit and receive information using deep modalities like ultrasound, and avoid implants in brain tissue,” the company said. says on its website. Merge envisions interfaces that are “equal parts biology, device, and AI in a form factor that we ourselves want to use and that is widely accessible.”
AI will play a major role in Merge’s approach. “Broadband interfaces will benefit from AI operating systems that can interpret intent, adapt to individuals, and operate reliably with limited and noisy signals,” according to OpenAI’s announcement. “OpenAI will collaborate with Merge Labs on scientific foundation models and other cutting-edge tools to accelerate progress.”
Synchronousanother brain-computer interface startup, which has raised $345 million to date, is working with chipmaker Nvidia to develop basic models for the brain. The idea is that these AI models would learn large amounts of brain data to create more intuitive interfaces with a wider range of capabilities. Currently, brain-computer interfaces allow paralyzed people to do things like move computer cursors and robotic arms, but in the future, these systems may be able to perform more complex tasks with the help of AI.
Merge is a spin-off from the nonprofit Forest Neurotech, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit research organization established in 2023, and several of Merge’s co-founders are also affiliated with Forest, a relationship that WIRED first reported in December. Forest will continue as a nonprofit entity while also collaborating with Merge, according to a blog post of its parent organization.
Merge hasn’t said which applications it will pursue, but Forest’s interest in mental health disorders and brain injuries could provide clues to the company’s initial direction. A miniaturized ultrasound device developed by Forest is being studied in a first UK safety trial.
Most brain-computer interfaces, including those from Neuralink and Synchron, measure electrical activity directly from neurons. An ultrasound-based device, on the other hand, indirectly interprets neuronal activity by detecting changes in brain blood flow. At least 12 volunteers have received a Neuralink implant so far, while 10 participants received Synchron’s device, which is implanted in a blood vessel next to the brain rather than in the brain tissue itself.
In addition to Altman, Merge Labs co-founders include researchers Mikhail Shapiro, Tyson Aflalo and Sumner Norman, as well as tech entrepreneurs Alex Blania and Sandro Herbig. The company is recruiting a number of positions.
