Researchers have developed a system that can extract long strings of stories from a person’s brain using functional MRI scans. The study, published in Nature Neuroscience, has potential for the development of seamless devices that could help people who struggle to communicate. Unlike other external approaches, the system produces continuous streams of words instead of having a more constrained vocabulary. The research raises concerns about privacy and unwelcome neural eavesdropping. The new system requires no surgery and relies on a language model built with GPT, one of the forerunners that enabled today’s AI chatbots.
For the study, three people listened to stories while functional MRI scans detected changes in blood flow in the brain. These changes are proxies for brain activity, albeit slow and imperfect measures. With this neural data, computational neuroscientists were able to match patterns of brain activity to certain words and ideas. The approach has a long way to go before it can be used outside of sophisticated laboratories.
Links: Science News