Could Lab-Grown Human Brains be the Future of Computer Power?

There are plenty of sci-fi films that still seem like they will never happen, such as Back to The Future, but there are also more than a few as if they are happening right now.

Sure, we haven’t actually unleashed SkyNet and set the human race on the path to destruction, à la The Terminator, but it also feels as though we’re not really that far away from that.

If you want proof of how weird the world is becoming, you need look no further than a story suggesting that scientists are coming worryingly close to being able to make computers out of actual living cells, with mini-brains able to power computers.

Biocomputing Explained

Biological computers may well sound like the most sci-fi thing that you can think of, but they have existed in some form for a while now. In simple terms, biological computing means the use of biologically derived things like DNA or proteins for real computations.

The expanding world of nanobiotechnology has allowed biocomputers to become a genuine thing, with biological materials having been produced that will allow for biochemical computers, biomechanical computers and bioelectronic computers to become more and more commonplace in our everyday lives, whether we like it or not.

@bloombergoriginals The line between #biology and #hardware is becoming blurry thanks to something called #biocomputing — Find out the promises and pitfalls of this nascent industry on Bloomberg Primer. #tech #science @Caroline Hyde 📺 ♬ original sound – Bloomberg Originals

Nanobiotechnology is allowing for the means to synthesise chemical components needed for the creation of a biocomputer system. Cells can be the basic components of such machines, or they can be the overriding nature of them. Regardless, the key thing to realise is that biological organisms have the ability to not only self-replicate but also self-assemble, which can mean that they are cheaper to run in the long term.

A team at Stanford University created a biological transistor in 2013, then four years later it was shown that living cells could perform computer tasks and store information.

The Future of Computing?

There are scientists working around the world, such as a team working at FinalSpark in Switzerland, who are hoping that the future of computing will see data centres full of ‘living’ servers. These will be able to replicate what Artificial Intelligence is doing nowadays, but whilst using up just a fraction of the energy.

Rather than taking advantage of the hardware and software that we’ve come to expect from our computers, phones and tablets, they will instead make use of ‘wetware’, which is the phrase coined by Dr Fred Jordan and his team to describe the creation of ‘organoids’ that can be attached to electrodes.

It works by turning skin cells into stem cells, which are cultured in order to be joined together to become clusters of neurons. These then become small spheres, which are known as organoids. After existing for several months, these organoids are then attached to an electrode, essentially meaning that a mini, lab-created brain is used for the purposes of powering machines.

They are made out of stem cells that are alive, even if they aren’t even remotely as complex as the actual human brain. Once connected to the electrode, these organoids are prompted to carry out simple commands.

At the moment, the response that appears on screen is little more than a small movement on a graph, not dissimilar in nature to that of an EEG. That, though, is an important first step on the road towards being able to get these biocomputers to learn and even adapt to perform tasks.

One of the biggest challenges facing such scientists is the ability to create a power supply that will keep the biocomputer going, given the fact that the brain receives blood vessels from the body to keep it going but the organoids that have been created don’t, so knowing how to take that to the next level is key.

Will There be Real-World Applications?

It is fair to say that FinalSpark aren’t the only organisation out there working in the realm of biocomputing. In 2022, for example, the Australian firm Cortical Labs announced that artificial neurons had been able to play the basic game Pong.

At Johns Hopkins University in the United States of America, scientists have created mini-brains of their own in order to investigate how drugs can be developed in order to help with neurological conditions such as autism and Alzheimer’s. This is taking a different approach towards solving the same problems.

Jensflorian, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The good news for the current computing industry is that there is no likelihood of biocomputing coming in to replace it any time soon. Instead, it is likely to work alongside the likes of silicon to find solutions to problems, with biocomputing carving out its own niche.

Although we’re still some way away from biocomputers having any real-world applications, that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any further down the line; after all, a conversation about Artificial Intelligence a decade ago would have produced the same non-committal response in terms of how useful it could actually be.