New 'Organoid Robot' Uses Lab-Grown Human Brain Organoids To Mimic Human Movement
In the relentless pursuit of technological progress, numerous inquiries arise concerning the boundaries of human ambition, prompting deep ethical and existential questions.
The race to create human-like robots is advancing at a breathtaking pace, with new technologies emerging almost hourly. As innovations continue to unfold, the race to develop humanoid robots capable of performing complex tasks is intensifying, capturing the attention and imagination of researchers and enthusiasts worldwide.
In a groundbreaking development, researchers from Tianjin University and the Southern University of Science and Technology have unveiled their latest innovation in human-machine integration. This pioneering model represents a significant leap forward in the merging of human capabilities with advanced technology, positioning China at the forefront of this highly competitive field. The breakthrough promises to open new horizons for various applications, including medical, industrial, and everyday use, heralding a future where the synergy between humans and machines is seamlessly enhanced. The robot often referred to simply as “organoid robot” or “brain-on-chip robot” uses an artificial brain created from human stem cells grown in a lab.
Ming Dong, an executive director at the Haihe Laboratory for Brain-Computer Interaction and Human-Computer Integration at Tianjin University explained in their June 28th release, “The brain-computer interface on a chip is a technology that uses an in vitro cultured ‘brain’ – such as brain organoids – coupled with an electrode chip to achieve information interaction with the outside world through encoding and decoding and stimulation-feedback.” The open-source system available online created by a team of Chinese scientists is called MetaBOC, Meta + Brain-On-Chip.
To create this new hybrid scientists connect a neural interface chip with a human brain organoid. This innovative approach is part of a broader wave of biocomputation techniques emerging in the field. These brain organoids exhibit superior processing power, consume significantly less energy, and showcase greater creativity and intuition compared to existing artificial intelligence systems.
In a cutting-edge development reminiscent of Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface (BCI) Neuralink, new biocomputer systems are being designed with the primary objective of studying and eventually restoring neural activity in patients suffering from aphasia and decreased mobility following a stroke. Promoted as a revolutionary advancement, these systems are also expected to assist in memory restoration for individuals battling dementia, Parkinson's, and Alzheimer's diseases.
The potential of these biocomputers extends beyond medical applications, raising questions about their availability to the general public and the possibility of their use in military applications. As technology progresses, it is crucial to consider the ethical and societal implications of integrating such advanced systems with the human brain.
The New York Post reports, “When paired with an electrode on a computer chip, it is able to encode and decode to have its mechanical vessel complete a bevy of tasks. Researchers describe the project as ‘the world’s first open-source brain-on-chip intelligent complex information interaction system.’”
While the organoid robot doesn’t have the capability to see, as it has no eyes, it does respond through electrical signals. Though the robot appears to have a “brain” open to the elements atop its “head” this is just for cosmetic purposes. The human brain organoid used in the robot only has a diameter of between 1 and 5 millimeters. An example of what the lab-grown brain organoid actually looks like can be seen below in a Cortical Labs’ “wetware” test session.
According to New Atlas, brain-on-chip biocomputers can learn to drive robots, and are in the process of mastering how “to drive a robot, figuring out the controls and attempting tasks like avoiding obstacles, tracking targets, or learning to use arms and hands to grasp various objects.”
CEREBRAL ORGANOIDS
The most effective human brain organoids aka cerebral organoids are grown using stem cells harvested from embryonic cells as they are yet to determine a specific cell type. One could also begin to grow a cerebral organoid in a Petri dish (in vitro) simply by taking samples from the skin, toenail, or any other cell type.
However, measuring at only a few millimeters across, one of the most prevalent issues scientists have with cerebral organoids is a lack of blood supply. Without a constant blood supply, the organoids cannot develop normally and thrive. The organoids will eventually “starve and die” without a vasculature. For this reason, cerebral organoids do better in vivo. Attempts have been made to troubleshoot this problem by inserting the immature organoids into a rat’s brain via cortical transplantation.
Using human embryos in this process has many ethical challenges that cannot be ignored. Specifically, with how the embryos are obtained and discarded if found to be unsuccessful in the stem cell collection process. In addition, the question of whether or not the cerebral organoid can become conscious is also an issue that can’t be overlooked moving forward.
According to New Atlas, in a 2022 study by Monash University and Cortical Labs attempting to determine sentience, a team of Australian scientists grew roughly “800,000 human and mouse neurons grown in culture and mounted on arrays of microelectrodes that can read their activity and stimulate them with electrical signals.” The scientist coined this device “DishBrain.” The Office of National Intelligence and the Department of Defence National Security Science and Technology Centre swiftly issued a $600,000 grant to extend the research.
The brain cells learned to play Pong in less than five minutes. New Atlas quotes Dr. Adeel Razi, co-author of the study as saying: “This new capacity to teach cell cultures to perform a task in which they exhibit sentience – by controlling the paddle to return the ball via sensing – opens up new discovery possibilities which will have far-reaching consequences for technology, health, and society.”
The Guardian quoted Razi explaining how the grant would be used: “Such intelligence would improve machine learning for technology including self-driving cars, autonomous drones, and delivery robots,” a far cry from helping patients with their neurological issues.
“We will be using this [national intelligence and security discovery research] grant to develop better AI machines that replicate the learning capacity of these biological neural networks. This will help us scale up the hardware and methods capacity to the point where they become a viable replacement for in-silico computing [using simulations],” Razi added.
Perhaps most concerning is human cerebral organoids are now available for commercial use by way of Swiss company FinalSpark’s Neuroplatform. For as little as $500 per month, Neuroplatform gives users access to the organoids, 24/7 remote access, programming API for Python, data storage and backup, and real-time neural stimulation and readings. According to their website, many institutions are already active users of the platform including the University of New York, the University of Michigan, the University of Bristol, the University of Bath, Oxford Brookes University, the Free University of Berlin, the University of Exeter, University Côte d’Azur, and Lancaster University Leipzig. New Atlas reported in May that FinalSpark had recently started using dopamine as a reward mechanism for its biocomputing chips by distributing different light frequencies.
Robot Faces Using Human Skin Cells
The announcement of the organoid robot comes on the heels of Japanese scientists at the University of Tokyo who recently unveiled their creation of humanoid robots with human-like flesh derived from living cell samples. The synthetic skin is now being applied to robotic heads, with facial expressions incorporated to enhance the robots' human-like appearance. Remarkably, this advanced tissue can also self-repair if damaged, adding a new level of resilience and realism to the technology.
To ensure the "skin" remained attached to the robot's face, scientists drilled multiple holes into the bot's face and used collagen to anchor the material. Senior author Professor Shoji Takeuchi of the University of Tokyo explained in a June 25th statement, “During previous research on a finger-shaped robot covered in engineered skin tissue we grew in our lab, I felt the need for better adhesion between the robotic features and the subcutaneous structure of the skin. We believe that creating a thicker and more realistic skin can be achieved by incorporating sweat glands, sebaceous glands, pores, blood vessels, fat, and nerves.”
This technology said to have been initially developed to study skin aging, surgical and cosmetic procedures, and plastic surgery, has been remarkably quickly adapted for uses that completely bypass these original purposes. Similar to other biotech advancements, these scientific breakthroughs are not focused on enhancing human lives but on supporting the push towards merging humans with machines, a concept known as transhumanism. “In this study, we managed to replicate human appearance to some extent by creating a face with the same surface material and structure as humans,” said Takeuchi.
In the ongoing quest for technological advancement, questions abound regarding the limits of human ambition. The pursuit of creating superhuman robots, whether through neurological implants or lab-grown cerebral organoids linked to machines, raises profound ethical and existential queries. Critics argue that such endeavors risk disrupting natural order, echoing biblical warnings about mixing iron with clay—a cautionary tale that foretells uncertain consequences.
Are they turning robots into humans or humans into robots?
Transhumanism. Easier to control that which can be programmed. Sadly, most are quite programmable already.
Fine article Haley!
Thank you!🙏💖
Why? Why make robots look like humans? I get the prosthetics, but the rest…the growing of human stem cells from embryos and robots with human skin, just NO. Scientists playing God.