The creator of Steam announced an energy-efficient brain chip.

Starfish Neuroscience, an American company, has announced a progressive development in the field of neurotechnology—a miniature electrophysiological chip with ultra-low power consumption for brain-computer interfaces. The startup was founded by Valve, the co-founder and CEO of the gaming company Valve—Gabe Newell, known for the Steam platform and such games as Half-Life and Counter-Strike.

The startup's official blog has published detailed information about the new chip, which is designed for recording and stimulating neural activity with low power consumption. The company emphasizes that the technology is aimed at broad applications in medical and research systems, especially for developing less invasive and distributed neural interfaces capable of simultaneously interacting with multiple brain regions.

One of the key goals of the project is to minimize surgical burden and reduce power consumption, which is achieved through the miniaturization of electronics and the elimination of an onboard battery—power is intended to be supplied wirelessly. The new electronics consume only about 1.1 mW, making it possible to use simpler and lower-power wireless interfaces.

The developing chip measures just 2 × 4 mm, is equipped with 32 electrode pads, and can simultaneously record neural signals on 16 channels at a frequency of 18.75 kHz, as well as provide stimulation with bipolar pulses. It also includes features for onboard data processing and monitoring the electrical characteristics of brain tissue.

To implement the project, Starfish is collaborating with the research organization imec and is seeking partners in the field of wireless power and communication, necessary for final devices and systems. The company expects the first chip samples to be available by the end of 2025.

Starfish Neuroscience views its solution as a potentially more compact and energy-efficient alternative to other neurointerfaces, including products from competitors like Elon Musk's Neuralink.

Source: StarFish