The Russian government is developing a new federal program “Brain, Health, Intelligence, Innovation for 2021-2029” for the development of neurointerface technologies, under which microcomputers are supposed to be implanted into the human brain for direct transmission of information from external devices.
According to Kommersant, this document was conceived and developed by the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS) jointly with the Lomonosov Moscow State University, and was also approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin in March this year. The Russian leader instructed Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration Anton Vaino to work out the program.
It is specified that about 54 billion rubles will need to be allocated for the new federal program until 2029. The project involves, among other things, the development of neurointerface technologies, including a set of hardware systems that allow controlling external devices directly using brain signals.
In addition, the authors of the document indicate the need to build up the scientific base for these technologies and massively produce advanced prototypes. It is noted that it is planned to create human-technology interfaces for managing complex systems, including remotely, based on the principle of remote presence.
We will remind, earlier the Neuralink startup Elon Musk showed a video with a nine-year-old monkey Pager, which can play video games thanks to a chip implanted in its brain. Earlier, the founder of the SpaceX and Tesla companies announced the implantation of a chip into the monkey's brain, which made it capable of playing video games. According to him, the implanted chip is completely hidden under the skin of the primate without harm to him, and he called the animal itself happy.
