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AI Turns fMRI Brain Activity Into Scene Descriptions in Proof-of-Concept Study

The system works only with cooperative, extensively trained participants inside an MRI scanner, with no evidence it can decode unsolicited thoughts.

Overview

  • Researchers reported a non-invasive 'mind captioning' approach that translated brain activity into natural-language sentences describing short videos.
  • In tests on six volunteers, the method generated detailed captions for what participants viewed and also produced matching descriptions from recalled memories.
  • The technique relies on a two-stage AI pipeline that maps MRI-derived meaning representations to fluent text.
  • Results were described by experts as surprisingly detailed for a non-invasive method, with Alex Huth of UC Berkeley highlighting the difficulty of achieving such specificity.
  • Coverage noted potential benefits for people with speech impairments alongside significant ethical concerns over mental privacy, consent, and possible misuse.