Beyond Silicon: The Lab-Grown Brain Cells Playing DOOM
The boundary between biology and technology just blurred again. In a breakthrough that sounds like something pulled straight from a science fiction novel, researchers at Cortical Labs have successfully trained “DishBrain”—a collection of 800,000 lab-grown human and mouse neurons—to play the classic first-person shooter, DOOM.
What is DishBrain?
DishBrain is a “synthetic biological intelligence” (SBI) system. Unlike traditional AI that runs on silicon chips, DishBrain uses living cells grown on a microelectrode array. These electrodes act as both the “eyes” and the “limbs” of the system, sending electrical signals into the neurons to represent game data and reading the neurons electrical outputs to translate them into game actions.
Leveling Up: From Pong to DOOM
In 2022, this same lab made headlines when their neurons learned to play Pong. But DOOM is an entirely different beast. It requires 3D spatial awareness, movement, and target acquisition. While the “living computer” isn’t beating pro gamers yet, it demonstrated a clear ability to learn, adapt, and improve its performance over time—frequently outperforming random button-mashing algorithms.
The Rise of “Wetware” as a Service
Why bother growing brains to play video games? The answer is energy efficiency. Modern GPUs consume massive amounts of electricity to run large language models. A biological computer, however, operates on a fraction of that power, fueled by simple glucose. Cortical Labs has already begun establishing “Bio Data Centers”—commercial-scale facilities where biocomputers provide “Wetware-as-a-Service” (WaaS) to global researchers.
The Future is Biological
At TechClaro, we track these developments because they represent the next frontier of engineering. We are moving from Artificial Intelligence to Biological Intelligence, potentially unlocking new ways to build software that is living, learning, and hyper-efficient.
Is your business ready for the Bio-Tech revolution? TechClaro helps you navigate the cutting edge of AI and specialized engineering.