Lab-Grown Human Brains: The Future of Energy-Efficient Computers

Swiss company "Final Spark" has introduced a revolutionary hybrid biocomputer that combines lab-grown miniature human brains with conventional electronic circuits.

This approach allows for significant energy savings compared to traditional computers, but it also faces serious challenges.

Challenges and Solutions
The main problem is the short lifespan of the lab-grown mini-brains, which quickly wear out and die. Scientists must constantly grow new ones to replace the defective ones. The basis for creating the mini-brains is stem cells derived from human skin tissue. These cells are transformed into 16 spherical parts called "organoids," which form the working core of the system.

Neuroplatform: Energy-Efficient and High-Performance
Scientists call their hybrid computer a "neuroplatform." It uses only a fraction of the energy required to power a traditional computer. The company claims that one neuroplatform can host 16 such mini-brains. This platform is already in use by nine institutions, integrating hardware, software, and biological components to create an energy-efficient and high-performance data processing system.

How Does It Work?
Each of the 16 mini-brains consists of approximately 10,000 living neurons, maintained by a microfluidic system that supplies water and nutrients to the cells. The Final Spark platform connects to the spherical clusters of lab-grown human brain cells, called organoids. The 16 organoids are placed in four matrices, each connected to eight electrodes and a microfluidic system.

Training and Stimulation
The mini-brains are trained to perform specific tasks using a system of rewards and punishments. If they perform the required tasks, they are rewarded with dopamine, a neurotransmitter responsible for pleasure. If the tasks are not completed, they are punished with chaotic stimuli, such as irregular electrical activity. This method achieves high results with minimal energy consumption.

Prospects and Ethical Questions
Final Spark claims that the miniature human brains consume a million times less energy than their silicon counterparts. The company hopes their technology will become a primary source of artificial intelligence, significantly reducing current energy costs. For instance, the large language model GPT-3, running on ChatGPT, consumes 10 GWh of energy in a few days, which is 6,000 times more energy than an average European city uses in a year.

However, the lab-grown brains have a limited lifespan—from a few hours to 100 days. The creators of the neuroplatform assure that this is normal because mini-brains are not sentient beings. Nonetheless, some experts express concern about the ethical boundaries of using human tissues in technology.

Using miniature human brains to power computers can save a lot of energy but also raises important ethical questions about the permissible limits of technology.