Brain-Computer Interfaces, the new link between mind and machine

For years, the idea of controlling machines with our thoughts has belonged more to science fiction than to strategic technology planning. And yet, as highlighted in SDA Bocconi DEVO Lab’s HIT Radar 2025 edition, Brain–Computer Interfaces (BCIs) are quietly progressing from experimental prototypes to early real-world applications.

According to the BCI Society, a brain-computer interface is a system that measures brain activity and converts it in (nearly) real-time into functionally useful outputs to replace, restore, enhance, supplement, and/or improve the natural outputs of the brain, thereby changing the ongoing interactions between the brain and its external or internal environments. There are two main types of BCIs:

• External BCIs, i.e. non-invasive systems that use sensors or electrodes placed on the scalp to detect brain signals.
• Implanted BCIs, i.e. systems that involve surgically placing electrodes directly into brain tissue, offering higher precision but with greater medical risk.

In both cases, the core function of a BCI is the same: detecting and interpreting neural signals so that thoughts can trigger actions, such as moving a cursor, controlling a robotic arm, or even enabling new forms of communication.

What’s driving the new wave of BCIs?

Big Tech, startups, investors and governments are actively pursuing neurotechnology, particularly in healthcare, accessibility, and immersive computing. Overall, the BCI market was valued at around $2 billion in 2023 and is projected to surpass $6 billion by 2030. Key accelerators include:

• Big Tech and consumer EEG players.
• Improved neural decoding through AI,
• Increased public funding.

Non-invasive BCIs are becoming affordable, increasingly accurate (also thanks to AI-enhanced neural decoding), and compatible with existing consumer and enterprise devices.

Minimally invasive and implanted BCIs represent the frontier of performance, enabling much finer-grained signal acquisition. Companies like Neuralink and Synchron received regulatory green lights for early human trials between 2023 and 2024, marking a turning point in 2024.

Why BCIs matter: early use cases are becoming real

While significant hurdles remain, particularly for implanted BCIs, the overall trajectory is promising, with the potential for substantial impacts across various sectors in the coming years. The most significant use cases develop along three main areas.

• Healthcare and Neurorehabilitation remain the strongest early domains. BCIs are being used to restore communication abilities for patients with paralysis, support rehabilitation through neurofeedback, assist with prosthetic control. For example, Corticale is an Italian neurotechnology company that specializes in the development and production of ultra-high-density, implantable neuroelectronic devices for research and medical applications.
   
• Cognitive Interaction and Productivity. Non-invasive headsets, combined with adaptive algorithms, are being tested for real-time workload detection, stress and focus monitoring, adaptive learning environments. Halo Headset from Halo Neurosciences is an example of consumer device designed for easy at-home use, aimed at improving mood, sleep and focus.
   
• Immersive Computing and Mixed Reality/Augmented Reality Synergies. BCIs are increasingly integrated with MR experiences, supporting hands-free control in complex environments. Galea is an advanced hardware and software platform that integrates a full suite of biosensing and neurotechnology into a virtual or mixed reality (VR/MR) headset. It is designed primarily for researchers and developers to measure a user's real-time physiological and neurological activity, such as brain activity, heart rate, skin conductance, muscle activity, and eye movements.

What’s holding BCIs back?

The hurdles that hinder BCI spread include:

• Ethical and Legal Questions. BCIs generate neural data, raising unprecedented issues of mental privacy and data protection. The EU AI Act is beginning to classify certain AI-enhanced BCIs as high-risk systems.
• Technical Limitations. Non-invasive BCIs suffer from noisy signals and ergonomic limits. Implanted BCIs face challenges of durability, surgery risks, and hardware maintenance.
• Infrastructure Gaps. BCIs require specialized hardware, clinical environments (for invasive systems), and new layers for neural data integration.

How enterprises should approach BCIs

BCIs are not expected to reshape mainstream business processes in the near term. But they hold the potential to reshape the long-term future of human–machine interaction. This is why this technology field should be closely monitored by industries with high cognitive workloads, intensive training needs, human–machine interaction, or advanced healthcare use cases:

• Healthcare, medtech & life sciences;
• High-risk, high-training industries (aerospace, energy, utilities, construction, defense, mobility);
• Advanced manufacturing & industrial operations (automotive, logistics, robotics-heavy environments, for cognitive monitoring, hands-free control, human–robot interaction);
• Education & corporate training (adaptive learning and performance monitoring via non-invasive BCIs);
• HR tech & well-being platforms (interest in cognitive state tracking, with strong ethical safeguards);
• Gaming, eSports & digital entertainment (consumer BCIs likely to appear first in this ecosystem).