Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino predicted that brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) could become mainstream consumer products within the next 20 years.
Ardoino’s remarks followed a breakthrough by Blackrock Neurotech, a portfolio company of Tether. The firm successfully restored speech in a patient who had nearly lost the ability to communicate via its brain implant
BCI
On Aug. 14, the New England Journal of Medicine published a report detailing how Blackrock Neurotech’s innovative text-to-speech brain implant enabled an Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) patient to speak again.
Ardoino noted that this breakthrough might be just the beginning, with BCIs potentially offering solutions for millions worldwide suffering from paralysis, lost functions, and neurological disorders that hinder basic abilities like walking, seeing, hearing, or talking.
Ardoino likened BCIs to having direct, low-latency access to computing power and AI capabilities, bypassing the usual information loss that occurs when converting thoughts into speech. He envisions a future where BCIs could lead to a new class of humans, “Human Sapiens^3,” whose brains would have access to advanced computational power, infinite knowledge, and AI.
BCIs are advanced devices that allow users to control applications or devices using only their thoughts. Ardoino’s keen interest in this field is aligned with Tether’s majority stake in Blackrock Neurotech, a company directly competing with Elon Musk‘s Neuralink to bring these technologies to the public.
However, Ardoino concluded that the technology must be open and safe for public use. He stated:
“We need to ensure that this technology will be as open, safe, and privacy-respecting as possible. Almost like a brain-operative system.”
Meanwhile, this development is part of Tether’s broader EVO strategy, which focuses on pioneering projects that redefine and empower humans in the future.
Decentralized AI
Notably, the company is also making giant strides in its AI development, with Ardoino recently revealing that the firm is looking to challenge the dominance of technology giants like Microsoft and Amazon.
According to him, AI technology is becoming heavily politicized, and an independent player like Tether will be crucial to the industry’s growth.
