Google and HHMI release complete fruit fly brain map

Google and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute have released a complete map of an adult male fruit fly’s brain and central nervous system, known as MaleCNS v1.0. The dataset, the result of a decade-long mapping project, contains over 166,000 neurons and approximately 125 million synaptic connections, making it the largest brain map completed to date by neuron count.

Following the public release, developers and engineers have begun integrating the connectome data into software loops to drive simulated insect bodies through virtual environments. Experiments have included training digital fly brains to navigate video games such as Doom, Minecraft, and Beat Saber. These simulations use the numerical representation of neural pathways to translate virtual triggers into simulated biological responses within a closed loop.