Apple, in collaboration with the company Synchron, is developing technology that will allow users to control devices such as iPhone, iPad, Mac, and the Vision Pro headset using brain impulses. This initiative aims to improve accessibility for individuals with physical disabilities, reports the Baltimore Chronicle, citing The Wall Street Journal.
The core of this technology is Synchron’s Stentrode implant, which is inserted into a vein near the motor cortex of the brain. The device reads electrical signals from the brain and transmits them to external devices via Bluetooth. Since 2019, ten patients in the United States and Australia have received the implant.
One of the first users of this technology is Mark Jackson, who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Using the implant and Apple’s Vision Pro headset, he was able to interact with a virtual environment and even “visit” the Alps, despite his physical limitations.
Apple is working on creating a protocol that will allow implanted devices like the Stentrode to integrate with iOS, macOS, and visionOS. This new protocol, known as Switch Control, is expected to be introduced in upcoming updates to iOS 19 and visionOS 3.
Additionally, the company is enhancing its Personal Voice feature, which allows users to create a digital copy of their voice. In the updated version, saying just 10 phrases is enough, and processing takes less than a minute.
Although the technology is still in its early stages, Apple sees great potential in it to improve the quality of life for people with movement and speech impairments.
Earlier we wrote that EU fines Apple and Meta for breaching competition rules.