University of Bristol researchers use brain organoids to recognize Braille

Researchers at the University of Bristol have successfully used lab-grown brain organoids to help a computer identify Braille letters. The study, published in Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence, explores the field of biohybrid computing, which integrates living biological systems with electronic technology.

The organoids used in the experiment are tiny, three-dimensional clusters of brain-like cells, each measuring less than one millimeter and containing approximately 10,000 neurons. By placing these organoids on a multi-electrode array, scientists converted tactile sensor data from the 26 letters of the Braille alphabet into electrical signal patterns.

When using three organoids together, the system achieved an 83% accuracy rate in recognizing the letters. This research aims to investigate whether biological neural networks can eventually lead to more energy-efficient computing systems, as the human brain operates on significantly less power than modern silicon-based AI hardware.