'Biological computer,' made of human brain cells, is now reality
06 Mar 2025

Melbourne-based start-up Cortical Labs has unveiled the world's first commercial biological computer made entirely of human brain cells.

The product, called CL1, was launched at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.

CL1's unique design features hundreds of thousands of lab-grown neurons. These neurons, about the size of an ant, are contained in a shoebox-sized chip that powers them and learns from external information inputs.

Neurons are derived from volunteers' blood
Neuron production

The neurons used in CL1 are created by reprogramming blood cells into stem cells, which can then differentiate into various cell types, including neurons.

"They're grown from induced stem cells that are generated from a small amount of blood from volunteers," explained Dr. Brett Kagan, the Chief Science Officer at Cortical Labs.

This is similar to what would be required for routine medical tests, underscoring the potential for widespread use of this tech in neuroscience research.

CL1's neurons exhibit learning capabilities
Learning process

The neurons in CL1 can learn by processing random or patterned information from the chip.

When they give wrong answers, they get random data, and patterned data for correct ones.

This technique was employed to teach the system, then called "Dishbrain," to play a video game called Pong.

Although it performed modestly—hitting a few more balls than missing them—this was a major milestone in neuroscience and AI.

Power consumption and speed of learning
Advantages

CL1 runs on only a few watts of power, much less than today's AI models that consume a lot of energy.

Noting that not all systems have to draw so much power, Dr. Kagan also highlighted how fast these neurons can learn.

"What humans, mice, cats and birds can do [that AI can't] is infer from very small amounts of data and then make complex decisions," he said.