Biotech startup Cortical Labs says it is building the first AI data centers powered by human brain cells, one in Melbourne and another in Singapore.
Cortical Labs scientists unveiled CL1, the “world’s first code deployable biological computer,” composed of 200,000 living human neurons, last year. Cortical Labs is also the company that taught brain cell-powered computers to play Pong and, more recently, Doom.
‘Biological’ data centers consume far less energy
Cortical Labs’ CL1 units will power these new “biological” data centers. This “wetware” approach, as the company refers to it, will involve facilities racks of CL1 biological computers, which will require a “fraction of the energy” used by digital systems. Compared to conventional silicon GPUs, which might require up to 600W, the company’s CL1 biological computers operate on just 30W, “dramatically reducing” electricity and cooling requirements.
According to Data Center Dynamics, Cortical Labs has partnered with Singaporean data center operator DayOne to house up to 1,000 units, deployed in phases.
“AI capacity is accelerating faster than most people realize, and everyone is talking about chips, models, and megawatts,” said Hon Weng Chong, MD, founder and CEO, Cortical Labs. “But far fewer are talking about the environmental and resource hazards that sit underneath this growth: the power constraints, the water trade-offs, and the sustainability risk if we simply build more of the same. The bio data center is our proof-of-concept that there’s another path. Computing that’s biologically inspired, dramatically more efficient, and designed for the world we’re actually living in.”
Working at one of these ‘biological’ data centers is a unique experience
According to an article published this week by enterprise technology news publication The Register, the day at one of these “biological” data centers starts with “topping up cerebrospinal fluid.”
“We remove the fluid every 24 hours,” Cortical Labs CEO and founder Hon Weng Chong said. They do this because the levels of oxygen and glucose in the liquid are reduced by the living neurons that run the company’s computers. As a result, an employee fills the company’s datacenter’s biological computers with the fluid to begin each day.
He believes that automation will eventually eliminate this work with fluids and gases. For the time being, however, Chong says that humans must involve themselves in the daily maintenance of the CL1 units. Additionally, he half-jokingly admitted to The Register that he feels a little uneasy about allowing biological computers to determine their own fate.