OpenAI backs startup using brain implants to detect cancer

OpenAI's venture arm and Peter Thiel's Founders Fund invested in Coherence Neuro, a startup developing a brain implant to detect and treat cancer, as part of a $45 million seed round. The implant was briefly tested in three patients at Royal Melbourne Hospital and is designed to decode tumor signals and deliver mild electrical stimulation.

• Coherence Neuro raised a $45 million seed round with OpenAI Startup Fund and Founders Fund
• The implant was tested for about 30 minutes in three patients during tumor-removal surgery
• The device decodes cancer-related signals and emits mild stimulation to slow tumor growth
• Next: recording and stimulation tests in seven more patients, then long-term glioblastoma trials