Tech Firms Showcase Innovative Products at BCI Conference

Cutting-edge scientific research, applications and relevant industry discussions were held in Minhang District during the 2025 Brain-Computer Interface Conference held in early December.

The theme was "Brain Connects the World, Wisdom Gathers in Shanghai," bringing together major university research teams, leading industry developers and sector experts to better link research, application and policy.

Organized by the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Minhang District and the Brain-Computer Interface Industry Alliance, the competition features four events – fatigue detection, emotion recognition, brain-controlled robotic cars and brain-controlled robotic arms – with 10 teams participating in each category.

Participating institutions include prominent Chinese universities, such as Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Fudan University, the University of Macau and Tianjin University, as well as companies like Nanoloop, Shaonao Tech and Nianji Tech.

Comprehensive industrial chain

Sixteen cutting-edge technology enterprises showcased China's comprehensive industrial chain in the brain-computer interface sector, spanning from foundational hardware to clinical applications. Among them, seven companies collectively unveiled multiple new products encompassing both implantable and non-implantable brain-computer interfaces, addressing diverse application scenarios including motor rehabilitation, neural modulation, sleep regulation, emotional regulation and visual restoration.

In March this year, StairMed Technology Co Ltd completed the first clinical trial of its brain-computer interface product. One month post-surgery, the patient was able to operate a smart wheelchair with convenience and ease.

"Witnessing the patient controlling the wheelchair so effortlessly for the first time is a dreamlike experience, and four years of our dedicated and relentless efforts have been worth it," remarked Zhang Shiqiang, the company's executive director and chief product officer.

SceneRay Medical's Chairman Ning Yihua expects the company to soon gain the first medical device license for interfering with addiction problems with recent research progress in the treatment of conditions, including obsessive-compulsive disorder, substance addiction and autism spectrum disorder.

"By precisely delivering subtle electrical pulses to key neural functional nuclei in the brain, we effectively alleviate symptoms such as tremors and rigidity in patients with Parkinson's disease and other conditions," explained Ning.

Addressing the broad scope of brain disorders, the team employs dual-target brain-machine and multi-pathway neural modulation to help patients who have endured decades of illness return to normal life.

At Mindtrix's booth, visitors were able to experience the world as perceived by the visually impaired in the future through a roughcomposed of 900 light points.

Mindtrix recently announced that it has completed the world's first functional interaction verification for complex graphics combined with multiple colors, which was achieved through intracranial electroencephalography recording and electrical stimulation of the occipital visual cortex.

This breakthrough not only offers innovative solutions for patients suffering from various forms of blindness, including retinitis pigmentosa, glaucoma-induced blindness and optic nerve damage, but could also be extended to applications in fields such as auditory and motor function restoration, embodied intelligence and neuromodulation therapy.

The solution is now under an investigator-initiated medical device clinical trial phase, and the company plans to expand the trial scope between 2026 and 2028. This will enable progression to registration clinical trials by 2028, with the first product expected to launch around 2030.

For medical practitioners, medical training and surgical experience enable them to become key players and contributors in linking technology models with actual clinical applications for brain-computer interface treatments.

Clinical breakthrough

As a neurosurgeon with extensive clinical experience, Mao Ying, director of Huashan Hospital affiliated with Fudan University, revealed groundbreaking achievements in the clinical application of brain-computer interfaces at the hospital.

In China's first clinical trial of a fully implanted wireless brain-computer interface, a patient paralyzed for eight years was able to play computer games, such as Snake and Mario Kart, using only his mind-controlled thoughts just 17 days post-surgery.

According to Mao, brain-computer interfaces are by no means a stand-alone technological product but rather an industrial convergence point bringing together multiple disciplines, including neuroscience, artificial intelligence, precision manufacturing and computational mathematics. The latest development of the technology pushes innovation and upgrades across the entire industrial chain.

China has established a certain advantage in academic research, according to Gao Xiaorong, a professor at Tsinghua University. Zhang noted that approximately 1,600 scholars have published five or more papers in the BCI field, and about half of them are Chinese researchers.

In 2019, China surpassed the United States for the first time in the number of papers published on BCI, yet there's still room for improvement to enhance the efficiency of translating academic research into industrial and clinical applications.

Minhang is striving ahead to tackle the issue and serve as an effective linkage for industry players with a newly established industry cluster and a dedicated incubation park for startups.

Sixteen enterprises have registered and commenced operations at the Shanghai Brain-Computer Interface Industry Cluster, which was launched in June 2025, and the Lingang Synlink Incubator has attracted 10 incumbent startups.

Sitting at the heart of the New Hongqiao International Medical Center, the industry cluster is only 400 meters away from the Hongqiao Campus of Huashan Hospital. This 100,000-square-meter cluster, with an initial investment of 1.2 billion yuan (US$170.34 million), is leveraging the Greater Hongqiao hub to forge a synergistic integration of research, clinical practice and industry.

It aims to establish a collaborative innovation network for brain-computer interfaces that will extend its influence across the Yangtze River Delta.

Minhang has also offered rich incentives for companies in the relevant sector.

Leading companies are eligible for up to 20 million yuan of registration subsidies and grants for R&D investment for three consecutive years, and they also offer up to a 2 million yuan bonus for competition-winning projects. These measures demonstrate a resolute commitment to nurturing the industry cluster, where top players are taking the lead and start-ups are gradually forming a cluster.

By integrating research and development, incubation and clinical application, the cluster aims to form a complete chain from technological breakthrough to commercialization.