IISc Launches Moonshot Project to Develop AI-Powered Brain Co-Processors
In a significant advancement for neuroscience and medical technology, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) announced on Wednesday the launch of a "moonshot" project focused on developing brain co-processors. This initiative, funded by the Pratiksha Trust, established by Kris Gopalakrishnan and his wife Sudha, aims to combine neuromorphic hardware with artificial intelligence algorithms to enhance or restore brain function.
Project Overview and Objectives
The project seeks to create both implantable and non-invasive brain co-processors capable of decoding neural activity from brain recordings. These devices will process signals using AI algorithms and re-encode them into the brain through neural stimulation or neurofeedback. The primary goal is to support cognitive rehabilitation, especially for stroke survivors who have lost essential functions such as goal-directed reach and grasp.
An MoU formalizing the partnership was signed at IISc in the presence of Kris Gopalakrishnan, Prof G Rangarajan, Director of IISc, and Prof B Gurumoorthy, chief executive of the Foundation for Science, Innovation and Development (FSID), along with other faculty members and deans.
Indigenous Development and Global Impact
A key focus of the project is to build indigenous capacity by localizing implant design, hardware systems, and AI software stacks compatible with clinical infrastructure in low-resource settings. The team plans to create India-specific databases of stereo EEG and ECoG recordings and develop open-source AI tools, datasets, and visualization platforms as digital public goods.
Kris Gopalakrishnan emphasized, "India is emerging as a global leader in neuroscience by uniting foundational research with clinical applications through collaborative, international partnerships. Supported significantly by the Pratiksha Trust, the Brain Co-Processors Moonshot Project accelerates the development of innovative medical technologies." He added that these innovations aim to provide world-class transformative neurological treatments to the global population.
Phases of Development and Collaboration
The project will unfold in two phases. In the first phase, the team will develop and validate a non-invasive neural co-processor to provide sensorimotor feedback for goal-directed reaching in stroke survivors, while laying groundwork for an invasive implantable version. The second phase will focus on creating a minimally invasive embedded co-processor to restore sensorimotor coordination in individuals with chronic, multi-domain deficits following middle cerebral artery stroke.
Prof G Rangarajan highlighted that the moonshot project brings together expertise across neuroscience, electrical engineering, bioelectronics, and neuromorphic computing to address stroke rehabilitation. The IISc team will collaborate with medical professionals and researchers across India to clinically validate and deploy the devices in line with national and international standards, incorporating feedback from neurologists, therapists, patients, and caregivers throughout development. The institute will also engage with research partners in India and abroad.
Building on Previous Initiatives
This initiative builds on a pilot effort under IISc’s Brain, Computation and Data Science programme, a cross-departmental initiative involving more than 20 faculty members, which is also supported by the Pratiksha Trust. Brain co-processors represent an emerging class of technologies designed to augment or restore the brain’s natural functions in real-world contexts, with the current project aiming to build an AI-driven, closed-loop device that interfaces with different brain regions to restore coordinated movement.
