BCI tech moves beyond research labs

As development continued, the potential market became clearer. China is home to about 85 million people with disabilities, according to the China Disabled Persons' Federation, including 24 million living with limb impairments. Many advanced assistive devices remain expensive or difficult to access, limiting their use among potential users.

That gap helped shape BrainCo's commercial strategy, which the company says focuses on usability and affordability. Engineers focused on improving neural signal decoding to enable more precise movement control. The company says its prosthetic hands can move individual fingers independently, allowing users to perform tasks such as typing or writing.

Globally, much of the attention around BCI technology has focused on invasive brain implants developed by companies such as Elon Musk's Neuralink. These systems implant electrodes directly into the brain to capture high-resolution neural signals, but they involve neurosurgery and lengthy and stringent regulatory approval.

BrainCo has instead focused on noninvasive wearable devices designed to interpret neural signals through external sensors. The approach avoids surgical procedures and could potentially reach a broader range of rehabilitation and consumer health applications, the company said.

The technology relies on proprietary hydrogel electrodes designed to capture neural signals without conductive gels.

According to the company, the sensors can achieve about 95 percent of medical-grade signal quality while decoding motor intentions in roughly 200 milliseconds.

BrainCo said its products are now sold in more than 35 countries and regions, with overseas markets accounting for about 30 percent of its revenue.

Despite the technological progress, wider adoption of BCI-based rehabilitation devices still faces challenges. Healthcare systems and insurance providers remain cautious about emerging neuro-technology, while procurement processes for assistive devices can move slowly.

Policy support is beginning to emerge. In 2025, the National Healthcare Security Administration issued pricing guidelines for neurological medical services that, for the first time, created dedicated reimbursement categories for BCI procedures, including fees for implanting and removing invasive BCI devices as well as adaptation services for noninvasive systems.

The move signaled growing policy recognition of BCI technology as it begins moving toward clinical application. The regulator has released 39 batches of medical service pricing guidelines covering about 180 new technology categories to help speed up the clinical adoption of emerging medical technologies, according to official data.

"The policy framework could help accelerate adoption of rehabilitation devices by clarifying how neurotech services may be priced and integrated into healthcare systems," said a spokesperson for BrainCo.

To expand access, BrainCo says it has focused on reducing manufacturing costs by developing core components in-house and using domestic supply chains.

The company says the retail price of its intelligent prosthetic limbs is roughly one-fifth to one-seventh that of comparable products in some Western markets.

Local governments have also begun testing the technology. In Zhejiang province, a government-backed program has already helped fit around 2,000 people with intelligent prosthetic limbs.

For some users, the changes are felt in everyday milestones. Hou Yunyan, a snowboard athlete who lost her left leg in a car crash at age 9, had never climbed stairs independently even after joining a sports team years later.

That changed after she began using a neural-controlled prosthetic leg.

"I felt calm and steady," she recalled of the first time she climbed a staircase on her own. "It was the first time I experienced what it feels like to walk upstairs."

"The purpose of technology is not how futuristic it looks," a BrainCo spokesperson said. "It's whether it can help people rebuild their lives."

lijing2009@chinadaily.com.cn