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Key Takeaways Neurotechnology startup Paradromics said its wireless brain implant enabled a 68-year-old woman with severe speech impairment to hold real-time conversations.
The system translated brain signals into a computer-generated voice.
The woman was the first participant in Paradromics’ clinical trial; the startup plans to enroll 10 patients nationwide in the trial.
Paradromics, a neurotechnology startup founded in 2015 by CEO Matt Angle, announced this week that a woman with a severe neurological condition used its brain implant to hold real-time conversations through a computer-generated voice.
The 68-year-old unnamed Michigan patient has lost most of her ability to speak. The experimental device allowed her to communicate spontaneously, including during phone calls with her grandchildren, The New York Times recently reported.
Brain-computer interfaces, or BCIs, use electrodes implanted in the brain to detect signals. AI then translates those signals into words.
When the patient tried to speak, the implant detected brain activity linked to her intended words. The system sent that information wirelessly to a computer, which displayed and spoke the words aloud. It also worked when she only imagined speaking, without moving her speech muscles.
Experts told the Times that the wireless system is an important step toward making brain implants practical for daily use. Unlike some earlier systems, it does not require the patient to be connected to a computer by a cord.
The patient was the first to receive the implant
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