Scientists build brain-like neuromorphic chip for the first time

According to a July 23 report (Beijing time) on the website of Science Daily, researchers in neuroinformatics from Switzerland and the United States have successfully developed a novel microchip that can simulate the brain's information processing in real time for the first time. This new research will help scientists create cognitive systems capable of interacting in real time with their surrounding environment.

Professor Giacomo Indiveri of the Institute of Neuroinformatics (INI) at the University of Zurich and ETH Zurich said: "Our goal is to directly simulate the properties of biological neurons and synapses on a microchip." The main challenge in achieving this is configuring networks made up of artificial neurons so they can perform specific tasks. Swiss scientists have now successfully overcome this hurdle. They developed a neuromorphic system capable of executing complex sensory-motor tasks in real time. Using this system, they demonstrated a decision-making task requiring short-term memory and cause-and-effect reasoning, which is essential for cognitive testing.

This new research is crucial for developing new brain-inspired technologies. For example, scientists can use this technology to combine the chip with sensor-based neuromorphic components (such as an artificial cochlea or retina) to create complex cognitive systems capable of interacting in real time with their surroundings.