Cortical Labs trains brain cells to play Doom

Multiple outlets report that Australian startup Cortical Labs used a "biological computer" to teach lab-grown human neurons to play the 1990s shooter "Doom." Reporting says each device contains around **200,000** living human brain cells grown from stem-cell derived material from blood donations, mounted on a silicon chip the company calls a CL1. The team previously trained cultures to play `Pong` and, per AFP quotes reproduced in several outlets, Cortical Labs scientists observed early behaviours such as "walking into walls" before the cultures learned to target enemies more reliably. Researchers converted the game environment into electrical stimulation patterns and monitored activity via electrodes, adjusting inputs to shape responses. Editorial analysis: Industry observers view the demo as an exploration of biohybrid computing rather than a near-term replacement for silicon, highlighting questions about scalability, reproducibility, and ethical oversight.