Military Applications of Invasive Brain Stimulation [Industry Viewpoint]

Melanie Segado

Abstract: The United States military has a long tradition of driving technological innovation and the field of neurotechnology is no exception. The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has several neurotechnology initiatives underway headed by Dr. Justin Sanchez. Two of these programs specifically focus on the applications of invasive brain stimulation. Systems-based neurotechnology for emerging therapies (SUBNETS) seeks to develop technological solutions to treat neuropsychiatric illness, notably post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), when psychotherapy and pharmaceutical interventions are ineffective .Restoring active memory (RAM) aims to develop neurotechnology to mitigate the debilitating memory loss associated with traumatic brain injury, which has affected over 270 000 American service members since 2000. Both of these programs are part of the broader presidential Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies® BRAIN Initiative. In addition, efforts have been focused on miti-gating the effects of sleep deprivation, increasing training ef ficiency, and even boosting decision making skills .