China Plans Expansive Effort to Advance Tech Similar to Musk’s Neuralink

China has announced plans to form a committee tasked with creating standards to guide the development and use of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), marking a significant push in this burgeoning field of technology. The move signals Beijing's intent to accelerate its progress and potentially rival Western developments, such as those spearheaded by Neuralink Corp.

The Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will spearhead this initiative, enlisting experts from various sectors including enterprises, research institutes, and universities. The committee will work on formulating standards in areas such as brain information encoding and decoding, data communication, and data visualization, critical components of BCI technology.

BCIs represent a cutting-edge domain where brain signals are used to control external devices, such as robotic limbs. One of the most notable entities in this space is Neuralink Corp, co-founded by Elon Musk in 2016. The company is currently developing an implantable device aimed at restoring mobility for people with quadriplegia and is actively seeking volunteers for its clinical trials.

China's decision to establish these standards underscores its ambition to ramp up innovation within its borders, particularly in fields where it has historically trailed behind Western nations. Chinese President Xi Jinping has been vocal about the need for increased domestic innovation to reduce reliance on foreign technologies. The country is already heavily investing in its semiconductor industry in response to potential further US restrictions on Chinese access to chip technology.

Until recently, China's endeavors in BCI technology have predominantly taken place within academic settings. A notable example is a report from March by CCTV, which detailed how a paralyzed patient regained some mobility following the implantation of a Neural Electronic Opportunity device by a team from Tsinghua University. Additionally, in February, China published an ethics guide for conducting BCI studies, reflecting its comprehensive approach to developing this technology responsibly.

The ministry has also invited public opinions on the matter, with a deadline for submissions set for July 30. This indicates an openness to stakeholder input as the country navigates the complexities and ethical considerations inherent in BCI technology development.