People often wonder what can be achieved using brain-computer interfaces (BCI). Through this article, I felt like I could help people understand more about this technology from a business perspective thanks to my experience. Indeed, for the past six months, I have been working on a non-invasive commercial BCI for athletes.

人们常常想知道使用脑机接口(BCI)可以实现什么。 通过本文，我觉得我可以凭借自己的经验帮助人们从商业角度更深入地了解该技术。 确实，在过去的六个月中，我一直在为运动员开发非侵入性的商业BCI。

In this article, I’ll present the main non-invasive and non-medical commercial BCI applications, present the strategic role of brain data in new business models, mention the leading companies in this field, and share my experience building a BCI prototype.

在本文中，我将介绍主要的非侵入性和非医学商业BCI应用程序，介绍脑数据在新业务模型中的战略作用，提及该领域的领先公司，并分享我建立BCI原型的经验。

有创与无创BCI (Invasive vs Non-invasive BCIs)

Before getting started, I must explain some key elements regarding BCI.

在开始之前，我必须解释一些有关BCI的关键要素。

BCIs are designed to read your brain electrical signals (thoughts, feeling, …) — sometimes through EEGs (different approaches exist).

BCI旨在读取您的大脑电信号(思想，感觉等)，有时是通过EEG(存在不同的方法)来读取。

Electroencephalogram (EEG): Monitoring method that detects electrical activity in your brain using small electrodes attached to a scalp. This activity shows up as wavy lines on an EEG recording. (1)

脑电图(EEG)：使用附着在头皮上的小电极检测大脑中电活动的监测方法。 此活动在EEG记录上显示为波浪线。 ( 1 )

非侵入性和侵入性BCI之间的主要区别。 (The main difference between non-invasive and invasive BCIs.)

Invasive BCI “requires surgery to implant electrodes under a scalp for communicating brain signals” (2). Using invasive BCIs, we generally get more accurate results.

侵入性BCI“需要手术在头皮下植入电极以传达大脑信号”( 2 )。 使用侵入性BCI，我们通常可以获得更准确的结果。

However, you can suffer from side effects due to the surgery. Unfortunately, after the surgery, scar tissues may form which can make brain signals weaker. Moreover, the body “can reject implanted electrodes” (3).

但是，由于手术，您可能会遭受副作用。 不幸的是，在手术后，可能会形成疤痕组织，这会使脑信号变弱。 此外，身体“可以拒绝植入的电极 ”( 3 )。

The most famous invasive BCI is probably the one from Neuralink.

最著名的侵入性BCI可能是Neuralink的一种。

Partially invasive BCI devices also exist. Usually, they are implanted inside the skull but stay outside the brain. From a technical perspective, “they produce more accurate results than non-invasive BCIs and are less risky than invasive BCIs” (4).

还存在部分侵入性BCI设备。 通常，它们被植入颅骨内部，但留在大脑外部。 从技术角度来看，“它们比无创BCI产生更准确的结果，并且比有创BCI风险低”( 4 )。

As of today, the majority of BCI applications available to the public are non-invasive.

到目前为止，向公众提供的大多数BCI应用程序都是非侵入性的。

为什么要开发商业BCI (Why developing commercial BCIs)

First of all, you should know that BCIs are not something new. Indeed, scientists have been working on BCIs since the 1970s for medical purposes. Thanks to the progress made in the medical field, the technology “recently” moved into the consumer sector.

首先，您应该知道BCI并不是什么新鲜事物。 实际上，自1970年代以来，出于医学目的，科学家一直在研究BCI。 由于在医疗领域取得了进步，该技术“最近”进入了消费领域。

The development of other technologies (AI, VR, …) has also made strategic for companies to work on commercial non-invasive BCIs (beyond the obvious medical field). As a result, a growing number of startups and large tech firms are trying to develop noninvasive BCIs.

其他技术(AI，VR等)的发展也使公司开发商业非侵入性BCI的战略成为可能(超出了明显的医学领域)。 结果，越来越多的初创公司和大型科技公司正在尝试开发无创BCI。

BCIs are seen as strategic for different reasons. First of all, they represent the potential “next hardware interface” (5).

由于各种原因，BCI被视为具有战略意义。 首先， 它们代表潜在的“下一个硬件接口” ( 5 )。

硬体介面 (Hardware interface)

We are getting close to a major revolution in the way we control our devices. In the upcoming years, controlling devices using our brain will become the norm. As you can imagine, is it key for large tech firms to start preparing their products ecosystem to this future reality.

我们正在接近控制设备的方式进行一次重大变革。 在未来的几年中，使用我们的大脑来控制设备将成为常态。 您可以想象，对于大型高科技公司而言，开始为未来的现实准备产品生态系统至关重要。

与AI协同 (Synergy with AI)

The other strategic element is to combine AI and BCI and create unique experiences thanks to them. AI is already being used in some commercial BCIs. Machine Learning (ML) can be used to analyze and classify brain waves in real-time. This can be very useful when “trying to measure user intent” (6).

另一个战略要素是将AI和BCI相结合，并借助它们创造独特的体验。 在一些商业BCI中已经使用了AI。 机器学习(ML)可用于实时分析和分类脑电波。 这在“尝试衡量用户意图”时非常有用( 6 )。

ML also helps “decoding the brain electrical activity with high variability and non-stationary noise into a meaningful signal” (7). ML has proved to be useful while building BCI applications.

ML还有助于“将具有高度可变性和非平稳噪声的大脑电活动解码为有意义的信号”( 7 )。 事实证明，ML在构建BCI应用程序时很有用。

Moreover, an “EEG dataset is high dimensional, deep learning models with a high number of parameters are interesting in the context of learning the raw EGG signals directly” (8).

此外，“ EEG数据集是高维，具有大量参数的深度学习模型，在直接学习原始EGG信号的上下文中很有趣”( 8 )。

Combining AI and BCI can create new opportunities and enable the user to experience something totally new (competitive advantage). For instance, BCIs can be used to create new content leveraging the brain-activity of the spectators and generative adversarial networks.

将AI和BCI相结合可以创造新的机会，并使用户能够体验到全新的事物(竞争优势)。 例如，BCI可用于利用观众的大脑活动和生成性对抗网络来创建新内容。

战略市场 (Strategic Markets)

Some markets can become quickly profitable for a company developing a BCI solution. For instance, the marketing/advertisement field can generate a lot of revenues. Even though there aren’t current devices (write to me if I am wrong) or applications designed for marketing purposes, research suggests that BCIs will be used with them in mind.

对于开发BCI解决方案的公司而言，某些市场可以Swift获利。 例如，营销/广告领域可以产生很多收入。 甚至 尽管目前没有用于营销目的的设备(如果我写错了，请写信给我)或应用程序，但研究表明，将BCI牢记在心。

Indeed, some studies have already pointed out that BCIs could be used to evaluate the attention levels generated by commercial ads. It is safe to assume that many companies will be interested in developing a solution to measure this key KPI for Marketing professionals.

实际上，一些研究已经指出BCI可以用于评估商业广告产生的关注度 。 可以肯定地说，许多公司将对开发一种解决方案以衡量营销专业人员的关键KPI感兴趣。

增强人类 (Augmented Human)

BCIs are also strategic because of the data we can collect related to the human body. This ability to collect strategic data is important since we have entered the era of “Human Augmentation”.

由于我们可以收集与人体有关的数据，因此BCI也具有战略意义。 自从我们进入“人类增强”时代以来，这种收集战略数据的能力就很重要。

Augmented Human: Refer to technologies that enhance human productivity or capability, or that somehow add to the human body. (9)

增强型人类： 指增强人类生产力或能力，或以某种方式添加到人体的技术。 ( 9 )

BCIs will complete or replace existing smart devices such as smartwatches and ultimately help us achieve more. In the upcoming years, I expect to see a growing number of startups competing in building BCIs that can analyze users’ moods, help improve and concentration, etc.

BCI将完成或替换现有的智能设备(如智能手表)，并最终帮助我们实现更多目标。 在未来的几年中，我希望看到越来越多的初创公司竞相建立BCI，这些BCI可以分析用户的情绪，帮助改善和集中精力等。

Our project: I am currently working on a project that helps athletes improve their physical performances thanks to the analysis of brain data. We combine this data with sensors and past performances using computer vision. The goal is to better understand how athletes react to certain situations and help them better manage their stress. After several tests, we have started working on a non-invasive BCI that would help individuals better understand their sports performance.

我们的项目：我目前正在从事一个项目，该项目通过对大脑数据的分析来帮助运动员改善身体表现。 我们使用计算机视觉将这些数据与传感器和过去的表现结合起来。 目的是更好地了解运动员在某些情况下的React，并帮助他们更好地处理压力。 经过几次测试，我们已经开始研究一种非侵入性BCI，它将帮助个人更好地了解他们的运动表现。

迈向侵入性BCI (Towards invasive BCIs)

I also believe companies are also interested in developing non-invasive BCI solutions to associate their brands with this technology and quickly build trust with customers. A trust that will become strategic once invasive BCIs will become mainstream.

我也相信公司也有兴趣开发非侵入性BCI解决方案，以将其品牌与该技术相关联并快速建立与客户的信任。 一旦侵入式BCI成为主流，这种信任将成为战略性的。

脑数据 (Brain data)

Perhaps the biggest reason why companies are investing in BCIs is called brain data. As you know, monitoring brain activity with BCIs produces a lot of information.

公司投资BCI的最大原因也许就是大脑数据。 如您所知，用BCI监视大脑活动会产生很多信息 。

Indeed, your brain produces a unique pattern of brain waves, giving you your own personal neural fingerprint. The way you react to some visual elements, your sleeping and attention data, etc. All of this can be captured and sold to other companies.

实际上，您的大脑会产生独特的脑电波模式，从而为您提供自己的个人神经指纹。 您对某些视觉元素，睡眠和注意力数据等的React方式。所有这些都可以捕获并出售给其他公司。

Who owns the brain data and what is it being used for?

谁拥有大脑数据，它的用途是什么？

The company that will own the most brain data will probably have a significant competitive advantage over the others. Imagine the impact of data network effects but applied to BCI and brain data…

拥有最多大脑数据的公司可能会比其他公司具有明显的竞争优势 。 想象一下数据网络效应的影响，但将其应用于BCI和大脑数据…

Moreover, having access to someone’s brain data can strengthen the lock-in effect. For instance, your brain data could be recorded and used for a personal identification system. This simple “feature” can reinforce your relationship with a BCI manufacturer.

此外，访问某人的大脑数据可以增强锁定效果。 例如，您的大脑数据可以被记录并用于个人识别系统。 这个简单的“功能”可以加强您与BCI制造商的关系。

Who owns the brain data and what is it being used for?

谁拥有大脑数据，它的用途是什么？

为商业目的建立BCI的挑战 (Challenges of building BCIs for commercial purposes)

As you may know, the commercial non-invasive BCI market is still in its infancy. For this reason, companies are still trying to find the best approach and methodologies.

如您所知，商业非侵入性BCI市场仍处于起步阶段。 因此，公司仍在尝试寻找最佳方法和方法。

In my opinion, we are still 2 or 3 years away from seeing BCIs become more mainstream. According to some industry experts, the main challenge is “to find intermediary markets that can still benefit from early iterations of BCIs” (10).

我认为，距离BCI成为主流还差两三年。 一些行业专家认为，主要挑战是“找到仍可从BCI的早期迭代中受益的中间市场”( 10 )。

Creating easy-to-use, accessible, intuitive, safe BCIs that can give good accuracy is still a major challenge.

创建易于使用，可访问，直观，安全的BCI来提供良好的准确性仍然是一个重大挑战。

设备 (Devices)

The device in itself is a major challenge (expensive, difficult to run with it, can be heavy, not discreet, …). Some companies are exploring the idea of developing sensors that integrate with earbud headphones that monitor electrical brain activity. Moreover, there’s major calibration work to be done for each individual... We are still far away from a device as intuitive as a smartphone.

设备本身就是一个重大挑战(昂贵，难以操作，笨重，不谨慎……)。 一些公司正在探索开发与耳塞式耳机集成的传感器的想法，该传感器可监视脑电活动。 此外，每个人都需要完成主要的校准工作...我们仍然离像智能手机一样直观的设备还很遥远。

证明有用 (Demonstrating the usefulness)

In several use cases, it will be difficult to convince customers to purchase BCIs. Do people actually care about controlling devices with their brain wearing a specific device? The answer is not that obvious.

在几种用例中，很难说服客户购买BCI。 人们是否真的在意用大脑佩戴特定设备来控制设备？ 答案不是那么明显。

For instance, in the case of lighting control, you might as well as just use a remote controller. I expect to see a growing number of startups pivoting to find the best use case. This necessity is a major risk for BCI startups because of the amount of technical development and funding required.

例如，在灯光控制的情况下，您可能会使用遥控器。 我希望看到越来越多的初创公司开始寻找最佳用例。 由于需要大量的技术开发和资金，对于BCI初创公司来说，这种必要性是一个重大风险。

It is also difficult to find the right price for a BCI solution. Finding the right balance between production costs and retail price is not an easy task for BCI companies.

也很难为BCI解决方案找到合适的价格。 在BCI公司中，要在生产成本和零售价格之间找到合适的平衡并非易事。

旋转 (Pivoting)

Several BCI companies have considered pivoting (from BCIs to wearables). Indeed, some business applications such as sleep monitoring already represent a crowded market. In the shorter term, it is critical to find for BCI players relevant and unique intermediary applications.

几家BCI公司已经考虑过转型(从BCI到可穿戴设备)。 确实，诸如睡眠监控之类的一些业务应用已经代表了一个拥挤的市场。 在短期内，至关重要的是为BCI参与者找到相关且独特的中介应用程序。

脑电图 (EEG)

Another worth mentioning potential issue for BCI solutions is related to EEG data. For non-invasive BCIs, “the skull and tissue between the electrodes and the brain result in weaker signals and slower transfer of information” (11). Obviously, this limits how well the user can control a device. Researchers are trying to overcome these limitations to improve EEG’s utility for both medical and non-medical applications.

BCI解决方案的另一个值得一提的潜在问题与EEG数据有关。 对于非侵入性BCI，“电极与大脑之间的头骨和组织会导致信号变弱并且信息传输变慢”( 11 )。 显然，这限制了用户对设备的控制能力。 研究人员正在尝试克服这些限制，以提高EEG在医学和非医学应用中的效用。

In some cases, the user basically has to go into a “meditative state to achieve control of brain modulation” (12) that can allow control of a device. Finally, current non-invasive BCIs tend to require intensive training.

在某些情况下，用户基本上必须进入“冥想状态以实现对大脑调制的控制”( 12 )，从而可以控制设备。 最后，当前的非侵入性BCI往往需要强化培训。

生态系统 (Ecosystem)

Just like AIoT strategies, I believe that one of the main challenges for BCI companies will be to integrate an ecosystem made of solutions from other companies. If tomorrow, large tech firms decide to build BCIs that only work with certain products, it will be difficult for startups to compete with them.

就像AIoT战略一样，我相信BCI公司面临的主要挑战之一将是整合由其他公司的解决方案构成的生态系统。 如果明天，大型科技公司决定建立仅适用于某些产品的BCI，那么创业公司将很难与它们竞争。

Ultimately, BCIs can strengthen the lock-in effect.

最终，BCI可以增强锁定效果。

BCIs will play a significant role in the smart home industry and probably replace smartphones over the long term. I am afraid the non-invasive BCI industry will more or less look like the smartphone industry (oligopolistic).

BCI将在智能家居行业中扮演重要角色，并可能长期取代智能手机。 恐怕非侵入性BCI行业或多或少会看起来像智能手机行业(寡头垄断)。

The use of BCIs in the smart environment field isn’t restricted to the home. There are also developments designed for the workplace or the car industry. For these reasons, I am afraid that we might have a market with a few BCI devices and many different “applications” made by other companies.

BCI在智能环境领域中的使用不仅限于家庭。 也有针对工作场所或汽车行业设计的开发。 由于这些原因，恐怕我们的市场可能只有少数BCI设备和其他公司制造的许多不同“应用程序”。

规 (Regulation)

The industry somehow suffers from a lack of clarity as to which devices qualify as BCIs (consumer side). Furthermore, the question of brain data is still unclear. Can we sell brain data? Do we have to comply with certain rules such as GDPR? What happens if a BCI is hacked?…

在某种程度上，该行业因缺乏哪些设备符合BCI(消费者方面)的规定而受到困扰。 此外，大脑数据的问题仍然不清楚。 我们可以出售大脑数据吗？ 我们是否必须遵守某些规则，例如GDPR？ 如果BCI被黑了怎么办？…

When it comes to medical devices, “the Food and Drug Administration regulates everything— including some BCIs. However, several BCIs are not classified as medical devices, and instead are marketed directly to the consumer market” (13).

对于医疗设备，“美国食品药品监督管理局(FDA)负责监管一切-包括某些BCI。 但是，一些BCI没有被归类为医疗设备，而是直接面向消费市场销售”( 13 )。

潜在的非侵入性和非医学商业BCI应用列表 (List of potential non-invasive and non-medical commercial BCI applications)

Below, I listed the most frequent applications of non-invasive and non-medical BCI applications.

下面，我列出了非侵入性和非医学性BCI应用程序中最常见的应用程序。

What can BCIs do?Currently, commercial BCIs tend to focus on understanding your emotional states or which movements you intend to make. As mentioned by Jo Best “A BCI could pick up when someone is thinking ‘yes’ or ‘no’, but detecting more specific thoughts are still beyond the scope of most commercial brain-computer interfaces.” (14)

BCI可以做什么？ 当前，商业BCI倾向于专注于理解您的情绪状态或您打算进行哪些动作。 正如乔·贝斯特(Jo Best)所提到的那样：“当有人在想“是”或“不是”时，BCI可能会出现，但是检测更具体的想法仍然超出了大多数商用脑机接口的范围。” ( 14 )

Moreover, “most commercial BCIs can only interpret your thoughts, but can’t put any ideas into users’ minds. However, experimental work is already being undertaken around how people can communicate through BCIs” (15). We can imagine that soon enough we will be able to share experiences with others far away by sharing the brain’s neural activity.

而且，“大多数商业BCI只能解释您的想法，而不能将任何想法带入用户的脑海。 但是，围绕人们如何通过BCI进行交流的实验工作已经在进行中”( 15 )。 我们可以想象，通过共享大脑的神经活动，我们很快就能与其他人共享经验。

It’s still early days for BCI technology, but we’ve seen promising results.

BCI技术仍处于初期阶段，但是我们已经看到了可喜的成果。

非侵入性BCI的不同应用和研究是： (Different applications and studies of non-invasive BCIs are:)

• Sleep patterns analysis

  睡眠模式分析

• Fatigue and mental workload analysis.

  疲劳和精神工作量分析。

• Mood detection. For instance, “a system that monitors the user’s brain to adapt the spaces accordingly in terms of temperature, humidity, lighting, and other factors.” (16) Recently, Nissan in cooperation with Bitbrain presented the first prototype of Brain-to-Vehicle interface.

  情绪检测 。 例如，“一种监视用户的大脑以根据温度，湿度，照明和其他因素相应调整空间的系统”。 ( 16 ) 最近，日产与Bitbrain合作推出了第一个“ 脑对车”界面原型。

• Emotions analysis

  情绪分析

• Controlling devices (robotic arms, etc.)

  控制装置 (机械手臂等)

• Personal identification system using brain waves.

  使用脑电波的个人识别系统 。

• Boosting physical movements and reaction time using transcranial direct stimulation.

  经颅直接刺激 促进身体运动和React时间 。

• Workplace analysis/Maximize productivity. For instance, there are projects to develop an application to analyze an operator’s cognitive state, mental fatigue, and stress level.

  工作场所分析/最大化生产力。 例如，有一些项目正在开发一个应用程序，以分析操作员的认知状态 ，精神疲劳和压力水平。

• Marketing field: In this field, “Studies have pointed out that EEG could be used to evaluate the attention levels generated by commercial and political ads across different media. BCIs could also provide insights on the memorization of those ads.” (17) In general, “BCIs could be used to optimize internet ads or TV spots” (18).

  营销领域：在该领域，“研究指出，脑电图可用于评估跨不同媒体的商业和政治广告所产生的关注度 。 BCI还可以提供有关这些广告记忆的见解。” ( 17 )通常，“ BCI可以用于优化互联网广告或电视广告”( 18 )。

• Educational field: In this field, “BCIs could help identify the clearness of the studied information for each student, allowing teachers to personalize their interaction with each student depending on the results” (19).

  教育领域：在该领域，“ BCI可以帮助确定每个学生所学习信息的清晰性 ，从而使教师可以根据结果个性化与每个学生的互动”( 19 )。

• Entertainment field: In this field “BCIs could be used in video games. For instance, players could control their avatar using only a BCI. When it comes to movies, BCIs can help to create interactive films with the use of the brain-activity of the spectators.” (20) In the future, “Audiences in the future will be empowered to immerse themselves and collectively control a film through their combined brain-activity” (21).

  娱乐领域：在此领域中，“ BCI可以用于视频游戏。 例如，玩家可以仅使用BCI控制他们的化身。 在电影方面，BCI可以利用观众的大脑活动来帮助制作互动电影。” ( 20 )将来，“未来的听众将被赋予沉浸感，并通过他们共同的大脑活动来共同控制电影”( 21 )。

• Military field: In this field “BCIs have been used by Soldiers to pilot a swarm of drones at the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)” (22).

  军事领域：在这一领域中，“士兵们已经在国防高级研究计划局(DARPA)上使用BCI来驾驶无人机群”( 22 )。

从事商业无创BCI的公司 (Companies working on commercial non-invasive BCI)

Below, I tried to list some companies currently working on non-invasive, non-medical commercial BCIs. If you know more companies, do not hesitate to contact me, I’ll add them to the list.

在下面，我试图列出一些目前正在从事非侵入性，非医学商业BCI的公司。 如果您知道更多公司，请立即与我联系，我会将它们添加到列表中。

Facebook Facebook purchased a BCI company, CTRL-labs, for a reported $1bn. Facebook is working on several projects. One of them being related to the translation thoughts to speech. The second one is about the interpretation of movements someone wants to make from their brain signals alone.

Facebook 以10亿美元的价格收购了BCI公司CTRL-labs 。 Facebook正在开展多个项目。 其中之一与语音翻译思想有关。 第二个是关于人们仅凭脑信号想做出的动作的解释。

NeurableNeurable is focusing on creating “everyday” brain-computer interfaces.

Neurable Neurable致力于创建“每天”的脑机接口。

NextMindNextMind, makes a “noninvasive neural interface that sits on the back of one’s head and translates brain waves into data that can be used to control compatible software” (23).

NextMind NextMind制造了一个“非侵入性神经接口，它位于人的头部，并将脑波转换为可用于控制兼容软件的数据”( 23 )。

Other companies:

其他公司：

• Orbityl轨道基
• Paradromics副驾驶
• Thync泰恩克
• NeuroSky神经天空
• Emotiv动机
• InteraXonInteraXon

It’s still early days for BCI technology, but the results are promising. However, “scientists in this pioneering field make it clear that we have not even scratched the surface of the potential applications of brain-computer interfaces (BCI)” (24).

BCI技术仍处于初期，但结果令人鼓舞。 但是，“这个开拓性领域的科学家清楚地表明，我们甚至还没有摸清脑机接口(BCI)潜在应用的表面”( 24 )。

如果您对BCI感兴趣，建议您使用以下链接： (If you are interested in BCIs, I recommend the following links:)

• Brain computer interfacing: Applications and challenges

  脑计算机接口：应用程序和挑战

• Imagining a new interface: Hands-free communication without saying a word

  想象一个新的界面：免提通讯，一言不发

• Novel applications of BCI technology: Psychophysiological optimization of working conditions in industry

  BCI技术的新应用：行业工作条件的心理生理优化

• An Educative Brain-Computer Interface

  教育性脑机接口

• Enhance of theta EEG spectral activity related to the memorization of commercial advertisings in Chinese and Italian subjects

  与中国和意大利主题的商业广告记忆有关的theta EEG频谱活动增强

• The study of brain activity during the observation of commercial advertsing by using high resolution EEG techniques

  高分辨率脑电图技术在商业广告观察中的大脑活动研究

• Facebook’s ‘mind-reading’ tech startup deal could completely change how we control computers

  Facebook的“读心”技术创业协议可能会完全改变我们控制计算机的方式