Synchron Announces First Use of BCI with Amazon Alexa

Synchron today announced the first use of Amazon Alexa by a patient implanted with its brain-computer interface (BCI).

Alexa’s first pairing with the Synchron BCI comes just weeks after the company linked its BCI to the Apple Vision Pro in July.

Mark, a 64-year-old man with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), used the combination of these two technologies in both cases. In this case, he successfully used his direct thoughts to control his smart home via the “Tap to Alexa” feature on his Amazon Fire tablet. Mark was able to use his BCI to select custom tiles that perform predefined Alexa actions. This includes turning lights on and off, making video calls, and listening to music and shows. He can also read books on Kindle or shop on Amazon entirely hands-free and voice-free.

“The integration of smart technology and my BCI is something I’m really excited about. It’s hard to imagine living in our modern world without the ability to access or control connected devices like Amazon Alexa and Echo products that are so present in my daily life,” said Mark, a trial participant living with ALS who uses Synchron’s BCI platform. “Being able to manage important aspects of my environment and control access to entertainment gives me back the independence I’m losing.”

Synchron says its integration allows users to control their environment inside and outside their home. It could make everyday tasks more accessible and improve independence for people with severe paralysis.

Learn more about the Synchron BCI

The Synchron BCI system is implanted endovascularly. Synchron claims its BCI is the only one that uses blood vessels to pick up signals from the brain. The implant is placed on the surface of the brain’s motor cortex via the jugular vein.

Once implanted, it senses and wirelessly transmits motor intent out of the brain, potentially allowing severely paralyzed people to control their personal devices in hands-free point-and-click mode.

Synchron completed enrollment in its COMMAND clinical trial in September 2023. It also received the FDA’s first Investigational Device Exemption for the evaluation of a permanent BCI implant. The company hopes to beat Neuralink to FDA approval and commercialization. Neuralink is in the midst of its own human trial, and recently announced plans to launch a second human implant.

“Synchron’s biological user interface bridges the gap between neurotechnology and consumer technology, empowering people with paralysis to regain control of their environment. While many smart home systems rely on voice or touch, we send control signals directly from the brain, bypassing the need for these inputs,” said Tom Oxley, CEO and founder of Synchron. “We are excited to use our biological user interface to access Alexa’s capabilities, so patients can interact with devices in their home without having to touch or call them, using only their thoughts, addressing a critical unmet need for millions of people with mobility and voice disabilities.”

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