Neuroscience: Developing a typing device for patients with paralysis (Nature Neuroscience)
17 March 2026
A device capable of translating activity in the brain during attempted keyboard typing into typed text is presented in a paper published in Nature Neuroscience. The authors suggest that this approach could offer a more familiar and easier-to-learn alternative to communication systems commonly used by people with paralysis, such as eye-gaze tracking systems.
Previous research has demonstrated that brain–computer interfaces can facilitate communication by moving a computer cursor, or by decoding attempted speech or handwriting. However, an interface that uses a standard QWERTY keyboard may be preferable for many individuals.
Justin Jude and colleagues developed a brain–computer interface and carried out clinical research in which the device was implanted into the cerebral cortex of two participants with tetraplegia (paralysis of the limbs and torso) — one living with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and one with a cervical spinal cord injury. The authors trained a deep neural network using the participants’ brain activity, which was recorded using electrodes implanted in their precentral gyrus, a brain region involved in voluntary movement, as they attempted to make the finger movements for typing on a QWERTY keyboard. They used this model to predict which character each participant intended to type and found that one of the participants was able to type up to 110 characters (22 words) per minute — 81% of the speed of an able-bodied smartphone typer — with a word error rate of 1.6%. The other participant was able to type up to 47 characters per minute. The device required as few as 30 practice sentences to begin working effectively.
Although further research in more participants is needed, the authors suggest that the device has the potential to help patients with paralysis to communicate rapidly, accurately and more easily. It also enables a level of privacy in communication that is not necessarily possible when using speech-to-text systems.
- Technical Report
- Open access
- Published: 16 March 2026
Jude, J.J., Levi-Aharoni, H., Acosta, A.J. et al. Restoring rapid natural bimanual typing with a neuroprosthesis after paralysis. Nat Neurosci (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-026-02218-y
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