“Neurotechnologies”: The term is not yet in the Merriam-Webster dictionary, but these approaches have already begun to revolutionize medicine. Since mid-October in Marseille, patients with severe epilepsy who are unresponsive to medication and inoperable have been wearing a cap with electrodes for 20 minutes a day, five days a week. These electrodes record electroencephalogram (EEG) data and deliver a current of two milliamperes. The aim of this “transcranial direct current stimulation” neuromodulation is to reduce the frequency of seizures.

Seventy patients across seven French cities will take part in this EU-funded therapeutic trial, designed by neurologist Fabrice Bartolomei (CHU La Timone, Marseille) and biomathematician Fabrice Wendling (INSERM, Rennes).

Meanwhile, in the United States, 20 centers are currently recruiting 100 people suffering from treatment-resistant depression to receive a deep brain implant under local anesthesia. The aim is to provide high-frequency electrical stimulation to the area of the brain identified as dysfunctional. This randomized study, dubbed “Transcend” and launched by Abbott, the world’s third-largest manufacturer of brain implants, builds on the work carried out by Helen Mayberg, a pioneer of this approach, in Toronto, Canada.

In May, at the AI for Good summit in Geneva, Switzerland, the X account of French start-up Inclusive Brains sent a message to the UN account and that of French President Emmanuel Macron. The sender, who was present in the room, wore a helmet fitted with electrodes: the EEG electrical waves generated by his thoughts, as well as his eye movements, were decoded by a generative artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm, enabling the post to be sent to the social media network

Macron responded: “The first tweet in history written and published by thought! (…) The pride of France!” The post “earned us some friction with Elon Musk, who claimed priority with his company Neuralink last March,” explained neuroscientist Olivier Oullier, co-founder of Inclusive Brains. “But the person had undergone surgery and was wearing an implant. Our experiment was carried out using electrodes placed on his scalp.” The start-up intends to use this tool primarily for people with disabilities.

Heal or repair the body

From 2017 to 2021, Oullier was the head of California-based Emotiv, which has a very different focus. Emotiv is the world leader in wearable devices that record brain activity. For less than €500, it sells audio headphones, headsets and headbands that analyze consumer emotions for neuromarketing purposes, or measure stress and concentration levels in the workplace to promote learning and productivity. Emotiv reported “800,000 uses,” enabling it to collect over “100 million minutes of EEG data” in 140 countries.

You have 85.84% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.