Experimental minimally invasive brain-computer interfaces may eventually help people with severe paralysis take actions like clicking a mouse with their thoughts and may be implanted via blood vessels.

In August 2025, brain-computer interface company Synchron released a video of an ALS patient in its clinical trial controlling an iPad using only his thoughts.

One of the earliest brain-computer interfaces was the cochlear implant, designed to treat hearing loss by capturing sound and converting it into electrical stimulation patterns.

Brain-reading devices that use electrode arrays to decode neural signals are helping paralyzed people control prosthetics that restore a sense of touch.

Neural interfaces offer major medical potential but raise serious ethical concerns, including how to ensure the long-term maintenance of the devices if companies go out of business.

Brain implants are restoring movement and communication in early human trials

Discover how brain-computer interfaces create a direct link between the brain and external devices in this 1440 Originals video.

Brain implants from companies such as Neuralink, Blackrock Neurotech, and Synchron must have their decoders regularly recalibrated because each person's brain activity patterns shift over time.

Neuralink brain implants have enabled a paralyzed person to play video games

Using brain implants to restore vision

Mind-controlled bionic arms use nerve implants to restore sensation and movement

Neuroscientists have found no brain signal that clearly marks when someone decides to act, which means implants may misinterpret fleeting thoughts as intention—creating ethical complications around imagination.

See how a novel neurological procedure that employs artificial intelligence restored a woman's speech almost 20 years after a stroke.

Predictive brain implants raise ethical concerns about patient autonomy after surgery since their constant monitoring and forecasting functions may blur the line between patient choice and device influence.

Elon Musk's Neuralink's N1 chip can wirelessly read brain signals from over 2,000 electrodes

Interface device implanted into ALS patients restored some of their abilities

China was the first country to approve a brain chip to treat a disability: a skull-embedded device called NEO that translates thoughts into robotic hand movements for people with paralysis.

Scientists have recorded neural rhythms as mice perform actions and observed those same rhythms replaying during sleep—witnessing loops that support memory formation and provide insights for brain-computer interfaces.

The world's first commercial biological computer combines neurons with silicon

Deep brain stimulation helps manage movement in patients with neurological disorders

Losing a brain-computer interface can trigger lasting psychological distress and a sense of personal loss.

Implanted neurotechnology can leave users vulnerable when manufacturers go under

The benefits of deep brain stimulation for treating substance use disorders remain uncertain amid inconsistent results for this surgical implant intervention.

An experimental bionic knee has been directly integrated into the user's muscle and bone—not an external socket—marking a significant prosthetic advancement.

Hacking the body for a future that didn't happen

Research suggests the brain maintains connections to lost limbs

Recent research found that the brain doesn't seem to massively rewire following amputation—upending earlier beliefs about the cause of phantom limb pain.

The Cybathlon is an international competition for assistive technology that pits teams against each other, using brain-computer interfaces and prosthetics to promote the independence of people with disabilities.

Brain-wave-reading earbuds with implanted electrodes are being used by some companies, primarily in China, to study workplace performance.

Stem cell therapy has shown promise in treating spinal injuries in an early-stage clinical trial.

New eye implant clinical trial recruiting in 2026

Researchers use the brain's ability to edit memories to explore memory deletion

Brain implants can help colorblind people hear colors—sending a signal to a brain chip that plays an associated sound.

The 'Armamentarium' is a set of new gene therapy tools—including viruses that could shuttle therapies into the body—designed to fight brain diseases.

Schizophrenia is being studied with pea-sized 'mini-brains'

Medical professionals have experimented with using mixed reality headsets

Learn how a doctor successfully treated a patient's phantom limb pain with a mirror, tricking his brain into thinking his still-present arm was the missing paralyzed left one.

How medical robots could cure cancer

Virtual platform lets surgeons train remotely and in real time

Phantom limb pain may often match the pain or contortion of the injury that led to the limb loss.

Visualize how a clot-busting medication helps to lessen the severity of stroke and save lives in this animated video.

Scientists using gene therapy recently managed to regenerate retinal cells in the lab—a breakthrough for mammals that could potentially lead to future treatments for human retinal diseases.

Listen to how bionic limbs are reshaping what it means to live as an amputee in this award-winning 2022 podcast series covering the stories of two amputees who struggled with shortcomings in prosthetic technology.

Scientists are learning to guide your dreams using sound and touch.

A physician with a rare and deadly disease saved his own life by identifying an existing medication that he repurposed for his condition, and now he's using AI to try to do the same for other patients.

In 2024, Colorado became the first state to legally protect neural data generated by a person's brain waves—requiring businesses to obtain consent before processing central or peripheral nervous system information.

Face and neck massages improve cerebrospinal fluid flow in mice, raising questions about potential applications for clearing abnormal protein buildup in patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

The potential of virtual reality in healthcare

Pig brain cellular activity was restarted hours after death in study published in 2019

Flexible integrated circuits can be built from carbon nanotubes and elastic materials

After 25 people used virtual reality headsets to practice flying with virtual wings—flapping their arms—their visual cortex responded to the wings almost as if they were real arms, treating them as body parts.