China is making progress in brain interfaces, a technology for direct communication between the brain and external devices.
A deep brain stimulation device thanks to which a man without extreme managed to play computer games is one of the growing brain-computer interface tested in people in China.
According to Nature magazine, the system, developed by Stairmed Medical Technology Company in Shanghai, China, is similar to implants tested by Neuralink, owned by Ilon Musk in California.
Stairmed's device has fewer sensors than Neuralink's device, but is smaller and less invasive.
Compared to the United States, China has no long history in the field and many of the devices tested are simplified versions of those developed by US companies, the researchers say.
But "research in this area in China is evolving very quickly," said Zhengwu Liu, an electrical engineer at Hong Kong University.
