Johnson Ann (Ann Johnson)

2023: A woman paralyzed after a stroke was able to speak thanks to chips implanted in the brain and an AI device. Video

On August 23, 2023, researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and the University of California, Berkeley, reported on the development of a new technology that allowed a paralyzed woman to "talk" again.

Ann Johnson, 48, suffered a severe stroke, as a result of which she lost the ability to move and communicate. Specialists managed to return the patient to the opportunity to interact with the outside world thanks to the use of a special brain implant with an array of electrodes. The device reads brain activity, and algorithms based on artificial intelligence convert the received signals into words and sentences.

Anne Johnson

The generated speech is delivered by an avatar on a computer screen. Moreover, this virtual double Johnson is able not only to speak, but also to demonstrate emotions. In particular, an avatar can smile, squeeze his lips and change his expression.

The system allows you to decode up to 78 words per minute, while a person can pronounce up to 160 words per minute. The technology is based on a predictive language model that anticipates the following words in a sentence. The researchers admit that the complex allows inaccuracies in the interpretation of brain activity, but in almost half of the sentences that Johnson wants to pronounce, AI algorithms correctly reproduce each word.

This technology made me feel like a full-fledged person again, "Johnson said.

The implant uses wired communication with a computer, but project participants are working on a wireless version. The researchers hope that their system in the future will help many people who have lost the ability to speak as a result of injury or disease to regain contact with the world in real time.^[1]

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