Cortical Labs
Australian biotechnology company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cortical Labs is an Australian biotechnology company based in Melbourne that develops biological computing systems by integrating lab-grown neurons with silicon hardware.[1] Founded in 2019 by Hon Weng Chong,[2] the company gained international attention in 2022 when researchers published a paper in the journal Neuron describing DishBrain, a system in which in vitro neuronal cultures learned to play the video game Pong in a closed-loop environment.[3] In 2025, Cortical Labs launched the CL1, which it describes as the world's first commercially available biological computer.[4]
Andy Kitchen
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Biotechnology, Neurotechnology, Biological computing |
| Founded | 2019 |
| Founders | Hon Weng Chong Andy Kitchen |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, Australia |
Key people | Hon Weng Chong (CEO) Brett Kagan (CSO) |
| Products |
|
| Website | corticallabs |
History
Founding and early research
Cortical Labs was founded in 2019 in Melbourne by Hon Weng Chong, a medical doctor and software engineer.[2] Chong had previously co-founded CliniCloud, a medical device startup backed by Tencent and Ping An Ventures.[5] Co-founder Andy Kitchen, a computer scientist, and Chief Scientific Officer Brett Kagan, a neuroscientist, were also key early members of the team.[6] The company's early research was conducted in collaboration with Monash University's Department of Neuroscience at Central Clinical School.[6]
Funding
In June 2019, Cortical Labs raised a US$1.62 million seed funding round backed by Blackbird Ventures and January Capital.[7] In April 2023, the company raised US$10 million in a round led by Horizons Ventures, with participation from Blackbird Ventures, LifeX Ventures, Radar Ventures, and In-Q-Tel, the venture arm of the CIA.[8]
Technology
Cortical Labs' approach combines lab-grown neurons, derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), with silicon-based electronics via multielectrode arrays.[3] The neurons are grown on the chip surface, where they form networks and communicate with the silicon hardware through electrical impulses.[1] The company terms this hybrid technology "Synthetic Biological Intelligence" (SBI).[4]
DishBrain
DishBrain was Cortical Labs' first major research platform. In a study published in Neuron in December 2022, the team demonstrated that in vitro neural networks, comprising approximately 800,000 human and mouse cortical neurons plated on a high-density multielectrode array, could be embedded in a simulated game-world modeled on Pong.[3] The neurons received sensory input via electrical stimulation indicating the ball's position, while their electrophysiological output controlled the paddle.[6] Using a feedback system based on Karl Friston's free energy principle, the cultures demonstrated measurable improvements in gameplay performance within five minutes, a result not observed in control conditions lacking structured feedback.[3]
A subsequent study by Cortical Labs researchers compared the sample efficiency of DishBrain's biological neural networks against state-of-the-art deep reinforcement learning algorithms, finding that the biological cultures demonstrated competitive or superior performance when learning opportunities were constrained to real-world timescales.[9]
CL1
The CL1, which Cortical Labs announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on 2 March 2025, is a self-contained biological computer designed for commercial and research use.[4][10] The system integrates lab-grown human neurons on an electrode array within a housing that includes an internal life-support system with pumps, gas mixing, temperature control, and filtration to keep the neurons alive for up to six months.[5][2]
Each unit is priced at approximately US$35,000, uses 850 to 1,000 watts of power, and does not require an external computer to operate.[1] The company also offers the Cortical Cloud, a "Wetware-as-a-Service" (WaaS) model that allows researchers to remotely access and experiment with biological neural networks via a Python SDK and browser-based tools, without needing a specialized laboratory.[1][2]
Biological Intelligence Operating System (biOS)
The neurons in Cortical Labs' systems are managed by a proprietary software platform called biOS (Biological Intelligence Operating System).[8] biOS creates a simulated environment and relays information to the neurons via electrical signals; the neurons' responses in turn affect the simulation, forming a closed-loop system.[1]
Scientific reception
The 2022 Neuron paper's use of terms such as "sentience" and "intelligence" to describe the behavior of the cultured neurons drew significant criticism from the scientific community. In March 2023, a group of researchers led by Fuat Balci published a response in Neuron arguing that the application of such terms was "not based on any established or robust consensus" and that the claims were made "with relatively weak evidence."[11] They expressed concern that terms from the study's title were "based on the authors' own recent theoretical propositions" rather than established scientific definitions, and suggested that such terms "ought to be used with more caution."[11]
A 2023 paper in Science and Engineering Ethics examined the ethical challenges posed by the DishBrain experiment, concluding that while it "does not provide clear evidence for artificial suffering," the ethical implications warranted serious consideration as the technology scales.[12]
Applications
Cortical Labs has positioned its technology for those application areas:
- Drug discovery and disease modelling: The platform allows researchers to test neuroactive compounds on living human neurons, potentially compressing weeks of conventional testing into shorter periods and reducing reliance on animal testing.[2][1]
- Neuroscience research: The system provides a tool for studying how biological neural networks process information and learn, with potential relevance to conditions such as epilepsy and Alzheimer's disease.[6][2]
- Robotics and adaptive AI: Simulated sensor streams fed into neuron cultures have shown rapid learning curves for tasks such as balance and navigation.[2]
Ethics
Cortical Labs has stated that ethical considerations are central to its research. According to Chief Scientific Officer Brett Kagan, the company's first published paper was an ethics paper, and the company has collaborated with independent bioethicists and regulatory experts.[13] Kagan has emphasized that the current neuronal networks are not conscious and has described the company's approach as viewing the system as "a totally different source of life" from animals or humans, while acknowledging the need for ongoing ethical discussion as the technology develops.[13]
Ernst Wolvetang, a stem cell specialist at the University of Queensland, told ABC News that while the work was impressive, the company's two-dimensional neuron layers remain relatively simplistic compared to the networks found in the human brain.[14]