(JW Insights) Jun 1 -- Brain-computer interface technology is becoming more than a hypothetical phenomenon in China with some momentum gained in terms of R&D and applications, especially amid the country's latest call to support the cutting-edge sector, said government officials and industry experts during the Zhongguancun Forum that ended on May 30.

They made the comments after Zhao Zhiguo, chief engineer at the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), said that brain-computer interface technology will be strongly supported to be an important development direction and accelerated efforts will be made to explore more application scenarios for the technology, reported China Daily on May 31.

"China has already formed a well-rounded industry chain including technology and applications in brain-computer interface. Related applications have already been applied in sectors like medical care, education and entertainment," Zhao said.

Brain-computer interface is a technology enabling a person to control an external device using brain signals. With vanguard applications like helping people with disabilities, the technology has been a key technological battlefield for global competition.

According to a report launched by the Brain-Computer Interface Industrial Alliance on May 29, China and the US are important birthplaces and markets for brain-computer interface technology, reported China Daily.

China has a leading advantage in non-implantable acquisition and sensing technology of brain-computer interfaces. Applications for patents in the segment in China soared to 35 percent of the global total in recent years, followed by 30 percent from the US and 10 percent from Japan, the report said.

As brain-computer interface technology gradually develops, He Jianghong, a renowned expert of neurosurgery at Beijing Tiantan Hospital, pointed out that safety problems should be given special attention during the technology's development.

Also, once this technology is widely applied, it will inevitably collect data like a large number of human brain signals, thus involving problems in privacy. Therefore, it is necessary for China and other countries to put ethical issues at the forefront and take precautions so that the brain-computer interface industry can develop in a healthy way in the years to come, he added.

(Li PP / Chen HX)