Physics / mechanism
Non-invasive BCI captures neural signals without penetrating the skull. EEG measures scalp electrical potentials (µV range, 0.1–100 Hz bandwidth) via electrode arrays; consumer-grade headsets run 8–32 channels at ~250 Hz sample rate, research-grade up to 256 channels. In-ear EEG embeds electrodes in the ear canal, sacrificing spatial resolution for wearability. NIRS (near-infrared spectroscopy, 650–950 nm) measures hemodynamic response (oxygenation proxy for neural activity) with ~1–2 cm spatial resolution, ~5 s temporal lag. Current SoA: EEG decodes motor imagery at ~80% accuracy in controlled settings; NIRS is used for prefrontal workload monitoring. Neither approach approaches invasive BCI (ECoG, Utah array) on signal fidelity.
Competitive landscape
EEG competes directly with fNIRS and hybrid EEG-fNIRS systems. Invasive approaches (ECoG, Neuralink-style Utah arrays) dominate on bandwidth and signal quality but require surgery, defining a hard ceiling for non-invasive use cases.
Companies using
Connected ideas
Sources
Frontier (open questions)
- To be added.