Listen to the sound of the big bang | New Scientist Weekly podcast 176

TL;DR

Scientists at Indiana University have developed brain organoids that can carry out tasks, such as solving complex equations, using AI technology. However, the performance of these brain organoids is still not as impressive as conventional AI systems.

Transcript

hello welcome back to New Scientist weekly the essential selection of the week's science stories I'm Penny Sashay and I'm Rowan Hooper welcome to the show this week we're discussing the news that an AI an artificial intelligence can read the minds of humans and you know how children like to spin round and make themselves dizzy but it turns out that... Read More

Key Insights

• 🧠 Brain organoids connected to computers through tiny electrodes can function as living AI systems.
• ⚾ Researchers believe that biological systems may ultimately be more efficient than computer-based AI systems.
• 🧠 The performance of brain organoids in comparison to conventional AI systems is not yet at a significant level.
• 🤨 Using living brains for AI tasks raises ethical concerns, and defining boundaries is essential.
• 🧠 Brain organoids have the potential to learn from minimal examples, unlike conventional AI systems that require large datasets.
• 😆 The development of brain organoids and mind-reading AI is influenced by sci-fi concepts.
• 🧠 Brain organoids offer a new avenue for understanding human brain function and potential therapies.

Questions & Answers

Q: How do brain organoids work as living AI systems?

Brain organoids, which are clumps of human brain cells, are connected to computers through tiny electrodes. This allows them to carry out tasks, such as solving complex equations, using AI technology.

Q: What are the potential advantages of using brain organoids as AI systems?

One advantage is that brain organoids could potentially be more efficient than computer-based AI systems, as they consume less power. Additionally, they may have the ability to learn from just a few examples, unlike conventional AI systems that require massive datasets.

Q: Are there any ethical concerns associated with using living brains for AI tasks?

While using living brains for AI tasks may raise ethical concerns, researchers argue that as long as brain organoids are not at a human level of consciousness, there may not be significant ethical issues. However, defining boundaries for this technology is crucial.

Q: How does the performance of brain organoids compare to conventional AI systems?

While brain organoids have demonstrated the ability to solve complex equations, their performance is not as impressive as conventional AI systems. However, this technology is still in its early stages, with only two teams currently working on it.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Scientists at Indiana University have connected brain organoids to computers using tiny electrodes in order to create living AI systems.

• The brain organoids, though still far from being complete brains, have been able to solve complex equations.

• The performance of the brain organoids in comparison to conventional AI systems is still not as impressive, but researchers believe that biological systems may ultimately be more efficient.