Neurotech Notables #28: March 18-31
March On, Spring Forward
Happy Monday, Readers.
Welcome back to Neurotech Notables, the leading source of commercial news and views for leaders worldwide, curated every two weeks.
With ongoing turmoil from Washington, US leadership is losing a step, in neurotech and beyond. Further cuts and layoffs are impacting research, clinical care, and regulatory functions. Over Q1, overall FDA de novo clearances are down by 83% this year, compared to Q1 2024.
As real world challenges mount, industry runs towards AI’s possibilities. neuroAI is en vogue across a spectrum of innovations, some with tenuous “neuro” ties, and others rooted in various depths of neural data.
Pertinent news this edition involves BCI foundation models, digital brains to enable research, biological brains to power computing, large language models, and biohybrid neural interfaces.
You’ll find a few new funding announcements, a handful of regulatory clearances, some exciting partnerships and new commercial appointments. See a handful of new sector roundups and landscape reviews and new company research.
The ground continues to soften for neurotechnologies in clinical trials with newly published resources to guide adoption. This edition also offers well-rounded doses of both society news and research papers across topics immediate and futuristic.
I’ve been working on new articles and analyses you’ll see in the coming weeks. Until then: Reach out with updates, insights, and questions, and your ideas for collaboration. Pardon my slow replies and have a great week ahead!
NANS
Join me this June at Neural Interfaces 2025 to gather insights about the future of BCI and beyond. More than a dozen expert discussions spanning research, clinical, and commercial topics + exclusive gathering for attendees.
TTP
How will the next generation of implants take advantage of ultrasound to charge and power devices normally out of reach for inductive power transmission methods? Early adoption suggests challenges remain. Read more.
Funding
Brainomix Completes £14M ($18M) Series C Round to Advance Its Transformative AI Imaging Technology in Healthcare (PR Newswire)
Brain.space secures $11M to grow its mental model platform (mobihealthnews)
Clee Medical Receives CHF 150,000 Venture Kick (BioAlps)
Brightmind.AI wins €200K strategic investment by 3xP Global through S2 Xpeed accelerator (LinkedIn)
XEIA announces investment in Vonova’s seed round (LinkedIn)
Digital Health Innovation Fund (DHDP) - “A total of up to $25-million will be available until March 2027 through the Government of Canada’s Innovation, Science, Economic, and Development (SIF, Stream 4) fund, which will operate under a reimbursement model. It is anticipated that individual eligible projects will have a cost between $1 to $5 million.”
Researchers Receive £4.1 Million to Research New Modelling and Treatment Approaches for Auditory Hallucinations in People with Psychosis (King's College London)
Commercial
2024 financial reports from Neuronetics and BrainsWay
Synchron Unveils Chiral, the World’s First Cognitive AI Brain Foundation Model (BusinessWire | Wired)
Other GTC news from MassDevice
inait announces collaboration with Microsoft to deploy novel AI based on digital brains across industries (Eureka Alert)
Cortical Labs has introduced CL1, the world’s first commercially available biological computer powered by living human brain cells (LinkedIn)
See also this profile from Capital Brief and Fanatical Futurist.
Reneural, NHS and Academic Partner Join Forces to Enhance Stroke Rehabilitation using Virtual Reality (Reneural)
Google Is Poised to Acquire Eye-Tracking Startup for Future Glasses (BNN Bloomberg)
Sense Neuro Diagnostics Appoints Gary Kurdziel as Chief Executive Officer (PR Newswire)
Cortec Welcomes Dr. Frank Desiere as Chief Executive Officer (Cortec Neuro)
Regulatory & Agency
Newronika Receives CE Mark Approval for AlphaDBS, Advancing Adaptive Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson’s Disease (PR Newswire)
FDA Issues Nyxoah an Approvable Letter for Its Genio System (BioSpace)
FDA Clears Magstim Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation System for U.S. Adolescent Patient Treatment (Biospace)
FDA's novel medical device clearances slow to a crawl (Fierce)
Only 2 de novo clearances in Q1 2025, compared to 12 in 2024.
RFK Jr. plans to slash HHS workforce by thousands (STAT) Senate confirms Makary as FDA chief with agency cuts, return-to-office in force (Endpoints News | (Mass Device); Return-to-office mandates pose the latest challenge to morale at the FDA (STAT)
Trump NIH, HHS Cuts Threaten Alzheimer’s and Dementia Research (Being Patient), Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services (The New York Times), Addiction Treatment (NPR), DoD’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) from $1.5B to $650M, slashing funding for “groundbreaking treatments in vision loss, TBI, PTSD, cancer, and more” (LinkedIn)
Biotech group warns exit of FDA vaccine official could erode standards (The Guardian)
Understanding the Brain Initiative Budget (NIH Brain Initiative)
source: NIH Brain FDA Layoffs and Impact on Industry: An MCRA Webinar (MCRA)
What can you do? Document NIH grant terminations, and check out upcoming resources from MCRA, above, and Dana Foundation (Society, below)
Industry
Announcing the BCI Priority Setting Partnership (BCI PSP)
Deciphering language processing in the human brain through LLM representations (Google Research Blog)
The Open Brain Institute announces the dawn of a new frontier in neuroscience (Open Brain Institute)
Openwater: Assessing the impact of low intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) stimulation on Long COVID related amyloid microclot fragmentation - a preprint (LinkedIn)
Elemind: Unraveling the neurophysiological correlates of phase-specific enhancement of motor memory consolidation via slow-wave closed-loop targeted memory reactivation (Nature Communications | PR Translation)
Thanks to New Technologies, Neuroscientists Have More Direct Access to the Human Brain Than Ever Before (The Transmitter)
Big Pharma Walked Away From Mental Health. Why Some Are Coming Back. (The Wall Street Journal)
The Future of Consumer Wearables (Where Theory Meets Practice)
Onward Announces First Human ARC-IM Lumbar Lead (Mass Device)
Abbott’s Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) Study for Depression Enters Transcend Phase (Medical Design & Outsourcing)
Parkinson's Disease: Can TMS Help? (Frontier Psychiatrists)
Accelerated TMS for Schizophrenia! (Frontier Psychiatrists)
The Physician and the Financier (Frontier Psychiatrists)
C-Path Announces Successful Conclusion of the eCOA: Getting Better Together Initiative (Critical Path Institute)
New resources for digital endpoints in clinical trials from DATAcc by DiMe (DiME | LinkedIn)
Developing Neural Implant Surgical Techniques (Aryan Govil's Substack)
The Business of Promoting Longevity (Eric Topol's Substack)
Longevity gets the Topol treatment (Substack) Roundup: Non-invasive, wearable devices with EEG sensors by Robert Connor (LinkedIn)
AI-Powered Medical Diagnostics Decision Support Devices Global Startup Deep Dive Analysis Q1 2025 (Alex G. Lee)
Rising Prevalence of Neurological Disorders to Drive Growth in Implantable Neurostimulation Device Market (OpenPR)
Implanted devices will grow from “$8.68 billion in 2024 to $9.64 billion in 2025” at an 11.1% CAGR
Pain Neuromodulation Market to Reach $6.5 Billion by 2030 (Neurotech Reports)
Dreams of Improving the Human Race Are No Longer Science Fiction (The Economist)
Neuralink’s Advancements in Brain-Computer Interface Technology: Clinical, Ethical, and Regulatory Considerations (Frontiers in Human Dynamics)
Section 5 is one of the better recent summaries I’ve seen on the current state of “neuroethics” and “neurorights.”
Neurotech TV
Bioelectronic Medicine Summit Showcases Advances in Neurotechnology (BusinessWire)
DeviceTalksWeekly Podcast, Host Tom Salemi interviews Todd Langevin, President of BIOTRONIK Neuro (LinkedIn)
Society
Bryan Johnson’s Blueprint for Human Enhancement Raises Questions About Confidentiality Agreements (The New York Times)
The neuroscience of dance takes center stage (Neuron)
Depression In Pregnancy? rTMS Might Be Our Most Safe Treatment (Frontier Psychiatrists)
11 "Mind Upload" Science Fiction Book Recommendations (Cognitive Wonderland)
Why Simply Putting Away Your Phone Won’t Help You Focus (Neuroscience News)
Effects of focal brain damage on political behavior across different political ideologies (Brain)
A systematic review with a Burden of Proof meta-analysis of health effects of long-term ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure on dementia (IHME)
The Rise of Neurotech and the Risks for Our Brain Data (New America)
Retirement and Brain Health: Tips to Stay Mentally Sharp (The New York Times)
Have you checked out the Dana Foundation’s newsletter lately? Filled with resources and opportunities, including a great career hub.
Research
Individualized non-invasive deep brain stimulation of the basal ganglia using transcranial ultrasound stimulation (Nature Communications)
Fascinating. This team used DBS to record LIFU and found “direct electrophysiological evidence of TUS target engagement and specificity in deep brain structures, suggesting its potential as a noninvasive DBS strategy for neurological and psychiatric disorders.”
Opportunity: AI for Understanding Human Cognition (Encode | LinkedIn)
Automated Imaging Differentiation for Parkinsonism (Jama Neurology | Summary)
Intracranial Neuromodulation for Pediatric Drug-Resistant Epilepsy: Early Institutional Experience (Frontiers in Surgery)
Implantable bioelectronic devices for photoelectrochemical and electrochemical modulation of cells and tissues (Nature Reviews Bioengineering)
Boosting brain’s waste removal system improves memory in old mice (Wash U)
New Technology May Help Differentiate Between Parkinsonisms (Practical Neurology)
BMC Duo Aims to Close Treatment Gap for People with Schizophrenia (BMC HealthCity)
April 09 - Focused Ultrasound Science, Education, and Discovery Workshop - University of Alabama Birmingham (LinkedIn)
Advances in Neurostimulation for Treating Neurological Conditions (ScienceDirect)
A Study on Brain-Computer Interface Signal Processing Techniques (arXiv)
Advances in Neural Prosthetics: A Review of Recent Developments in Implantable Devices (IOP Science)
Advances in Flexible Dielectric Elastomer Actuators for Wearable Haptic Interfaces (Science Advances)
A Novel Approach to Neurosurgical Interventions for Stroke Patients (Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery)
Neural Circuit Mechanisms Underlying Memory Formation in Hippocampal Networks (Nature Communications)
Advances in Brain-Computer Interface Technology for Neurological Disorders (Nature Communications)
Bridging Nature and Nurture: The Brain's Flexible Foundation from Birth (Stanford Neuroscience)
Neural Mechanisms Underlying Cognitive Development: A Review of Recent Findings (ScienceDirect)
BCI always trips me up coming from the behavioral science world. BCI there means Behavior Change Intervention. 🙃