Biocomputers Powered by Living Brain Cells

Scientists are literally building computers made of living neurons. Grown in labs, wired to chips - and they compute. Swiss startup FinalSpark rents out its “wet servers” for $500/month - clusters of human neurons hooked up to electrodes. Meanwhile, Australia’s Cortical Labs launched CL1, the first commercial biocomputer: 800K neurons, sub-millisecond response, $35K per unit. The magic? Insane energy efficiency - up to 10,000× less power per operation than silicon chips. Your brain runs on 20 W; the Frontier supercomputer eats 10 MW for similar work. Beyond AI, these hybrid brains could help test drugs and study disorders like Alzheimer’s and autism - no animal testing required. Cyberpunk’s future isn’t silicon. It’s neurons in a Petri dish.