Cells taught to play video game

BOFFINS have pulled off a mind-blowing stunt - teaching a clump of living brain cells to blast their way through cult video game Doom.

- BY SAM COFFEY

In a world-first that sounds straight out of a sci-fi blockbuster, eggheads at Aussie biotech firm Cortical Labs have trained more than 800,000 living neurons in a petri dish to play the iconic shooter.

The Melbourne-based team first made waves a few years back when their so-called CLI “mini-brain” managed to run the 1972 arcade classic Pong.

But their latest feat sees the same brainy tech tackling Doom - the fast-paced, monster-packed 3D blaster that defined a generation of gamers.

The CLI system is made up of real, living neurons grown in a nutrient-rich solution. These cells spread across a silicon chip, which sends and receives electrical signals.