When Tiny Machines Think Big: The Role of AI in BCI
Abstract: Tiny machines take the form of embedded microchips or microcontrollers. They can be considered nanotechnology-based or microcircuit based. As machines get “tinier”, and more and more sensors are packed onto these tiny boards, near continuous data collection will occur. What will be required is efficient programming approaches, being economical in instructions for the maximum outcomes. Unbelievably we will see a return to Assembly language, traditional C and C++ programming environments. Computational power away from the core to the wireless edge. Theoretically, the ultimate home for these tiny machines will be anything that needs to be monitored for conditional changes- from things to animals to human beings. Might these tiny machines become the interface to brain-computer interfaces, otherwise known as brain-machine interfaces. We have current examples of tiny machines with electrodes being placed on the brain via deep brain stimulation, or behind the ear for cochlear implants, or embedded for the proper functioning of the heart. This is uberveillance in its ultimate form, the ability to be able to identify, locate, and understand the condition of the recipient of the tiny machine. Operational scenarios abound as tiny machines embedded in the human might well interface with other in body devices, communicate with onboard wearables or luggables, and even externally with hub locations such as lamp-posts and kiosks. The ultimate question is when we introduce artificial intelligence into these contexts, what might well happen with bidirectional instructions from brain to machine, or machine to the brain, or brain to brain, etc. Will we encourage open brain systems, with open brain data, that attempts to measure activities between neurons, and unravel the complex web of synapses and how we communicate. The future will dictate if we venture toward a world of BrainNet platforms. Not the Internet of Things, but the Internet of Brains!
Link to discussion on LinkedIn here.
Citation: Katina Michael and Peter Pohorily, 22 October 2019, “When Tiny Machines Think Big: The Role of AI in Brain to Computer Interfaces”, (eds) Steve Whalley, Andreas Spanias, Evgeny Gousev, SENS|MACH, San Diego, Marriott, Coronado Park, USA.