OpenAI 宣布投资神经科技初创公司 Merge Labs，该公司由 Sam Altman 共同创立并已完成 2.52 亿美元融资，投资方包括 OpenAI、贝恩资本和 Gabe Newell。Merge 的目标是利用超声波读取和调制大脑活动，以实现人与计算机之间的高带宽连接。与已融资 13 亿美元的 Neuralink 不同，Merge 明确表示其技术不需要植入大脑组织，而是通过分子层面与神经元交互，并使用超声等深度穿透方式进行信息传输。

AI 是 Merge 技术路线的核心组成部分。OpenAI 表示，高带宽脑机接口需要 AI 系统来解释意图、适应个体差异，并在信号有限且噪声较高的情况下稳定运行。为此，OpenAI 将与 Merge 合作开发科学基础模型和前沿工具。作为对比，另一家脑机接口公司 Synchron 已累计融资 3.45 亿美元，并正与 Nvidia 合作开发面向大脑的基础模型，目前相关技术主要支持瘫痪患者控制光标或机械臂。

Merge 源自 2023 年成立的非营利研究机构 Forest Neurotech，该机构仍将继续独立运作并与 Merge 合作。Forest 开发的一种微型化超声设备已在英国开展早期安全性试验。现有数据表明，Neuralink 已为至少 12 名志愿者植入设备，而 Synchron 的血管内装置已有 10 名受试者使用。相比直接测量神经电信号的方式，超声方案通过检测脑血流变化来间接解读神经活动，代表了脑机接口发展的另一条技术路径。

OpenAI announced an investment in neurotechnology startup Merge Labs, cofounded by Sam Altman, which has raised $252 million from backers including OpenAI, Bain Capital, and Gabe Newell. Merge aims to use ultrasound to read and modulate brain activity, enabling high-bandwidth connections between humans and computers. Unlike Neuralink, which has raised $1.3 billion, Merge says it will avoid implants into brain tissue and instead interact with neurons at the molecular level while transmitting information through deep-penetrating modalities such as ultrasound.

AI is central to Merge’s strategy. OpenAI said high-bandwidth brain-computer interfaces require AI systems that can interpret intent, adapt to individuals, and function reliably with limited and noisy signals. OpenAI will collaborate with Merge on scientific foundation models and other frontier tools. By comparison, another brain-computer interface company, Synchron, has raised $345 million and is working with Nvidia on brain-focused foundation models, with current applications largely enabling paralyzed users to control cursors or robotic arms.

Merge is a spinoff of Forest Neurotech, a nonprofit research organization founded in 2023 that will continue operating while collaborating with the startup. A miniaturized ultrasound device developed by Forest is being evaluated in an early safety trial in the UK. Existing data show that Neuralink has implanted devices in at least 12 volunteers, while Synchron’s intravascular device has been used by 10 participants. Unlike systems that directly measure neural electrical signals, ultrasound-based approaches infer activity by detecting changes in cerebral blood flow, representing an alternative technical pathway for brain-computer interfaces.