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Neuralink for Fungi: A Fungus Involuntarily Controls a Robot
Just as Neuralink and similar companies aim to enable humans to control robotic devices by reading brain signals, researchers at Cornell University and the University of Florence have managed to make a fungus control two small robots, one with spider-like legs and the other with wheels.
Fungal roots contain a branched network of filaments called mycelium, which functions somewhat like the neural networks in the human brain. It transmits electrical signals in response to environmental stimuli such as temperature, humidity, and light.
The researchers cultivated these fungal networks in a laboratory and designed a Neuralink-like interface. The interface can capture the electrical signals passing through the fungus. These signals are then processed and converted into digital commands to control the robot’s movements.
The researchers placed this fungus on a small, spider-like robot, creating a hybrid bio-robot, part machine and part living tissue. The living part receives stimuli from the environment, and the robot responds to these stimuli with movement.
