Facebook building tech to read your mind

Facebook is developing "silent communication" technology that will allow people to type at a rate of 100 words per minute.

The company revealed the project on the second day of its F8 Conference. Building 8, the social media firm's hardware research lab, has been leading the efforts in developing the new technology with the help of 60 scientists and academics.

The "silent communication" platform will require new technology to detect brainwaves without surgical implants; Facebook is hoping to build both the hardware and software itself.

"Our brains produce enough data to stream four HD movies every second," Mark Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page.

"The problem is that the best way we have to get information out into the world - speech - can only transmit about the same amount of data as a 1980s modem.

"We're working on a system that will let you type straight from your brain about five times faster than you can type on your phone today.

"Eventually, we want to turn it into a wearable technology that can be manufactured at scale. Even a simple yes/no 'brain click' would help make things like augmented reality feel much more natural."

Zuckerberg conceded that technology would have to "get a lot more advanced" before individuals could share pure thoughts or feelings.

And Facebook is trying to reassure users that its new technology won't be used to read users' random, everyday thoughts.

“Think of it like this: You take many photos and choose to share only some of them. Similarly, you have many thoughts and choose to share only some of them,” it said.

“This is about decoding those words you've already decided to share by sending them to the speech centre of your brain.”

It's not the first time a technology company has wanted to blend artificial intelligence with the human brain.

Last month Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk launched Neuralink, a medical research company aiming to improve human memory through the use of artificial intelligence. The start-up also hoped to offer numerous other AI-induced brain enhancements.

Facebook itself has been stepping up its AI lately, recently announcing plans to use virtual and augmented reality to grow its platform.

This article originally appeared at itpro.co.uk