Brain Implant Enables Paralyzed Woman to Speak in Real Time
New AI-powered technology translates neural signals into speech within one second, offering natural communication for individuals with severe speech paralysis.
- Researchers tested the brain implant on a 47-year-old woman, Ann, who lost her ability to speak after a brainstem stroke 18 years ago.
- The system uses AI to decode neural signals from the motor cortex and synthesize speech in near real-time, achieving unprecedented fluency.
- Speech output is personalized to mimic the participant's pre-injury voice, trained on recordings from her past, such as her wedding video.
- The technology eliminates delays seen in earlier systems, enabling fluid, natural conversations with a vocabulary of over 1,000 words.
- While the system remains experimental, researchers are focusing on refining accuracy, expanding vocabulary, and incorporating emotional expressiveness.
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