University of Pennsylvania — BCI & neurotechnology ecosystem
Official site → Philadelphia, PA, USA
The University of Pennsylvania (Penn / UPenn) is one of the stronger “full-stack” BCI ecosystems in the U.S., with credible depth across:
- implantable / clinical-facing brain–machine interface (BMI) work (neurosurgery + neurology + engineering),
- neural decoding + machine learning (methods that generalize beyond a single dataset), and
- interface biology + biohybrid constructs (the “living electrode” direction).
A useful way to map Penn is: (1) clinical neuroengineering & implantable systems, (2) decoding/methods, (3) tissue-engineered interfaces.
Featured groups (starting set)
1) Richardson Lab (Neurosurgery) — clinic-facing brain–machine interfaces
- Lab site: https://www.med.upenn.edu/richardsonlab/
- Research page: https://www.med.upenn.edu/richardsonlab/research.html
Penn’s neurosurgery-facing BMI work matters because it is forced to care about the practical constraints that dominate translation (implants, materials, workflow, and long-term function).
2) Pesaran Lab — brain–machine interfaces and motor-system signals
- Penn Medicine BMI page: https://www.med.upenn.edu/pesaran-lab/brain-machine-interfaces
- Lab site: https://pesaranlab.org/
3) Penn Center for Neuroengineering and Therapeutics (CNT) + Litt Lab — translational neuroengineering
- Penn Neurology “Translational Centers of Excellence” page (mentions CNT): https://www.med.upenn.edu/neurology/tce.html
- Litt Lab: https://littlab.seas.upenn.edu/
CNT/Litt is a Penn signature: device + data + clinical workflow under one umbrella.
4) Kording Lab — decoding and ML methods (BCI-enabling infrastructure)
A lot of usable BCI progress is methods progress: robustness, generalization, calibration reduction, and evaluation.
5) Cullen Lab — biohybrid interfaces and “living electrodes”
Penn’s “interface biology” thread is a real differentiator. One representative, directly relevant paper on engineered axonal tracts as “living electrodes”:
- Serruya MD, et al. Engineered Axonal Tracts as “Living Electrodes” for Synaptic-Based Modulation of Neural Circuitry. PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34045935/
Clean claims you can make (with sources)
- Penn has multiple labs explicitly describing brain–machine interface / BCI research aims (e.g., Richardson, Pesaran).
- Penn has an institutional translation push via CNT, bridging Perelman School of Medicine and Penn Engineering. https://www.med.upenn.edu/neurology/tce.html
- Penn has a serious biohybrid / living electrode thread targeting chronic interface biology constraints. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34045935/