Snake Robot Capable of Treating Spinal Cord Injuries

In this undated photo, a timber rattlesnake, is cautiously displayed. John Weiss / AP
In this undated photo, a timber rattlesnake, is cautiously displayed. John Weiss / AP
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Snake Robot Capable of Treating Spinal Cord Injuries

In this undated photo, a timber rattlesnake, is cautiously displayed. John Weiss / AP
In this undated photo, a timber rattlesnake, is cautiously displayed. John Weiss / AP

A Japanese-US research team has made a major step towards treating spinal cord injuries by designing artificial neurons that can replace biological cells, after they created a robot that resembles a snake in both its shape and movements.

During the study published in the Atlantis Press Journal on April 12, the researchers managed to simulate the so-called "central pattern generation networks" (CPG) in the spinal cord, found in humans and snakes. CPGs are neuronal circuits that are responsible for walking, breathing, swimming.

Previous studies sought to develop animal-like robots replicate inspired by the central pattern generation networks models, but with no the biological simulation achieved by the researchers from the University of Bordeaux and the University of Tokyo.

"By using a digital neural system, we managed to efficiently simulate the biological behavior of a snake. The robot included two main components: one that acts like the brain and another that acts like the body; the signal kicks off from the brain and propagates all over the body; these processes are controlled by the central pattern generation network," Timothée Levi, the study lead author, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

In Levi's opinion, the most meaningful aspect of the study is that they tried to be faithful to biology, as the robot they designed has the same features of a real snake in terms of motor patterns and reaction to noises, which makes it highly efficient for researches seeking a better understanding of the behavior of reptilians.

"This is a just another application of the robot; but the main objective of this research was to develop a robot for biomedical applications, especially spinal cord injuries. We are now planning to add more intelligence in the robot's brain with learning rules, as well as using the different sensors. Moreover, one of our long term goals is to combine living neurons," Levi concluded.



China’s Xi Lauds AI Progress, Meets BRICs Bank on Shanghai Visit 

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
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China’s Xi Lauds AI Progress, Meets BRICs Bank on Shanghai Visit 

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)

China's President Xi Jinping urged Shanghai to accelerate efforts to turn itself into a technological and innovation hub with global influence as he made his first visit to the city since November 2023, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Xi said that Shanghai, China's main international financial hub, should strive to be at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) development and governance, the report added.

The Shanghai visit comes at a time when the trade war with the United States has raised the stakes for global economic growth, and as China pushes forward with AI development in the wake of DeepSeek.

Xi urged the city to expand its exploration of AI models and said more supportive policies for the technology should be rolled out, as he visited an incubation lab for AI startups and tried on a set of smart glasses, the report said.

The Chinese president also visited the Shanghai-based New Development Bank, a multilateral bank of BRICS member nations, and met its president, former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Xinhua said.