Key Takeaways
- • A survey cited in Andreessen Horowitz's "The State of Longevity" report, published November 3, 2026, found 39% of respondents would use a non-invasive brain-sensing device for sleep, focus or mood.
- • The report found 29% of respondents would use thought-controlled devices, signaling early consumer interest in neural technology.
- • Andreessen Horowitz expects brain-computer interfaces and brain wearables to become a consumer category within the authors' lifetimes.
- • Non-invasive players including Conduit, Alljoined and Aleph Neuro are collecting large datasets to train AI models that translate weak neural signals into text and images.
- • Implantable efforts such as Neuralink and UCSF's Dr. Edward Chang's team are advancing the field, with clinical participants already controlling computers and decoding speech.
Summary
A survey referenced in Andreessen Horowitz's "The State of Longevity" report, published on November 3, 2026, found that 39% of respondents would use a non-invasive brain-sensing device for sleep, focus or mood. The same survey found 29% would use thought-controlled devices. The firm views these figures as evidence of early consumer interest in technology that could change how people manage their health and interact with consumer devices.
According to the report, Elon Musk's Neuralink has brought surgically implanted brain-computer interfaces into public view. Clinical trial participants with paralysis already use the company's devices to control computers by decoding intended movement from activity in the motor cortex. Neuralink is also developing technology intended to restore some visual perception for blind people by stimulating the visual cortex.
Other implantable approaches record signals from the brain's surface without penetrating underlying tissue, which may offer safety and long-term use advantages. At UCSF, Dr. Edward Chang's team uses high-density electrode arrays on the brain's surface. In 2021, the team became the first to decode full words directly from the brain activity of a paralyzed person unable to speak. More recently, it decoded speech and gestures together, showing that a single implant could support both words and body language, the report said.
Andreessen Horowitz said non-invasive approaches could reach consumers sooner. Companies are developing patches, headbands and hats with electrodes that sense brain activity. Conduit, Alljoined and Aleph Neuro are collecting large datasets to train AI models to translate weak, noisy non-invasive signals into text and images reflecting what someone is thinking or seeing. The report suggested such technology could eventually let people communicate ideas directly to AI agents without first putting them into words.
Some devices aim to alter brain activity as well as read it. More neuro wearables are reaching the market that seek to improve sleep and focus through targeted stimulation of the brain or peripheral nerves, the report said. Andreessen Horowitz expects brain-computer interfaces and brain wearables to become a consumer category within the authors' lifetimes.
According to the report, Elon Musk's Neuralink has brought surgically implanted brain-computer interfaces into public view. Clinical trial participants with paralysis already use the company's devices to control computers by decoding intended movement from activity in the motor cortex. Neuralink is also developing technology intended to restore some visual perception for blind people by stimulating the visual cortex.
Other implantable approaches record signals from the brain's surface without penetrating underlying tissue, which may offer safety and long-term use advantages. At UCSF, Dr. Edward Chang's team uses high-density electrode arrays on the brain's surface. In 2021, the team became the first to decode full words directly from the brain activity of a paralyzed person unable to speak. More recently, it decoded speech and gestures together, showing that a single implant could support both words and body language, the report said.
Andreessen Horowitz said non-invasive approaches could reach consumers sooner. Companies are developing patches, headbands and hats with electrodes that sense brain activity. Conduit, Alljoined and Aleph Neuro are collecting large datasets to train AI models to translate weak, noisy non-invasive signals into text and images reflecting what someone is thinking or seeing. The report suggested such technology could eventually let people communicate ideas directly to AI agents without first putting them into words.
Some devices aim to alter brain activity as well as read it. More neuro wearables are reaching the market that seek to improve sleep and focus through targeted stimulation of the brain or peripheral nerves, the report said. Andreessen Horowitz expects brain-computer interfaces and brain wearables to become a consumer category within the authors' lifetimes.
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