A recent clinical trial in Shanghai has enabled a paralyzed patient to control a wheelchair and even a robotic dog using only his thoughts, in what Chinese researchers call a breakthrough for brain-computer interface (BCI) technology.
The trial was operated on a middle-aged man, who became quadriplegic after a spinal cord injury in 2022. He regained only limited head and neck movement despite more than a year of rehabilitation.
In June 2025, Chinese researchers implanted him with a minimally invasive BCI system. After two to three weeks of training, he was able to control a computer cursor and tablet using his thoughts, matching the results of the team's first clinical trial.
This time, researchers expanded the system from two-dimensional screen control to three-dimensional interaction with the physical world, enabling ultra-low-latency control of a power wheelchair and even a robotic dog.
"The patient can use the robotic dog as an extension of his own body, as an intelligent agent, to go downstairs and pick up deliveries. He can also control a wheelchair with his thoughts and go outside for a walk. This has greatly enriched his daily life," said Zhao Zhengtuo, a researcher from the Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology (CEBSIT) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).
It might sound jarring, but Zhao said the surgery -- the second CAS-led invasive brain-computer interface clinical trial -- is minimally invasive.
"This is our brain-computer interface system. It consists of two parts. The front-end sensor is like an extremely thin wire, about one-hundredth the thickness of a human hair. A five-to-eight-millimeter section is implanted into the brain. The processor is embedded into the skull after thinning the bone by about three to five millimeters. Overall, it is a minimally invasive procedure," said Zhao.
After the implant procedure, the patient is guided to use his thoughts.
"Although the patient cannot move his limbs, he can imagine movements, such as rotating his wrist. We map those intentions to external devices. It's like integrating the device into his body and experiencing it as part of himself," said Zhao.
Speed is a critical aspect of the technology. By customizing communication protocols, the team reduced the end-to-end delay from neural signal acquisition to command execution by external devices to under 100 milliseconds, faster than the body's natural neural delay. This creates a seamless control experience.
For now, invasive brain-computer interfaces are focused on medical use, with dozens of clinical cases already completed. China hopes to promote large-scale BCI applications for people with special needs in the foreseeable future.
"In the future, there will be more applications, including decoding language and other intentions from the brain. We might find better ways to express internal brain information through external devices," said Pu Muming, a scientific director of CEBSIT, and also a CAS academician.
Brain-computer interface trial lets paralyzed man control wheelchair and robotic dog by thoughts
Brain-computer interface trial lets paralyzed man control wheelchair and robotic dog by thoughts
