The Modern Prometheus

Recently it seems as though a week can’t go by without another breakthrough in artificial intelligence (AI) quietly being announced.?While most of us are still trying to grasp what AI even is or how it will affect us— new research and development in this field makes envisioning what a world of AI means even harder to fathom.

News recently broke that “Biocomputers” (artificial intelligence computers powered by actual human brain cells) are past the conceptualization phase and are well along in development!

?Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, may be lawyering up if she lived amongst us today— as an international team of 21 scientists, including specialists in Biomolecular Engineering, Robotics, and Oncology, just published an article in the journal Frontiers in Science, which has an uncanny resemblance to her classic horror story. The teams' report reveals their ground-breaking work in what they are calling “Organoid Intelligence”.

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Organoids, according to the researchers, are clumps of brain tissue derived from human stem cells that are fed nutrients and oxygen in a chemical environment in which they are ‘housed’— the results are 3D cultures of brain cells that can replicate the human brain’s system responsible for learning and memory.

While AI is still very much in its infancy, it has already revealed weaknesses when it comes to understanding complex human scenarios, responding to unexpected situations or assessing human emotions. According to Thomas Hartung, one of the team’s researchers, "The hope is that some of the remarkable functionalities of the human brain can be realized in OI, such as its ability to take fast decisions based on incomplete or contradictive information (intuitive thinking)."

Where are we in this field and what are the possibilities?

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Just to help fathom what the future of OI research may look like— last year this team of researchers was able to design an OI system wherein a ‘modest sample’ of live brain cells could teach itself how to play the classic video game PONG!

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The possibilities of OI are both fascinating and terrifying— while further research could someday provide vital information about neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer and dementia (or even a cure), the idea of ‘self-aware’ computers with ‘human DNA’ creates a minefield of ethical questions.

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How long it will take to develop a fully functional biocomputing system is uncertain; it may take decades, or it may happen sooner if, ironically enough, AI has evolved sufficiently enough to help speed the process. In the meantime, we may want to take some time to get reacquainted with Shelley’s creature and ponder what the future will be like coexisting with this artificial humanoid intelligence. One can only hope, this time there will be a happier ending!

#ai #artificialintelligence #biocomputing #TheBORNgroup #techmahindra #uiuxdesign #digitalexperience #thisisborn

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