(Nature) – People who give tissue samples for biomedical research might have no idea that their cells are being used for biocomputers.

The workings of the brain are often compared to those of a computer. Some researchers are testing this analogy to its limits, attempting to build computers containing laboratory-grown cultures of brain cells. In doing so, they hope to circumvent the physical limitations of the silicon-based computing hardware used for today’s artificial intelligence1,2.

The promise is there. Brain tissue combines memory and computation in the same substrate, requiring fewer components than conventional computers do. Theories of neural networks, based on neurons and synapses, have inspired AI algorithms. Brains consume much less energy than AI machines do3 and don’t require vast cooling systems. (Read More)