Brain-Computer Interface on the Brink of Commercialization: Chinese Firms Advance Minimally Invasive Solutions for Medical Applications as Musk Pushes Mass Production

NBD Reporter | Chen Ting NBD Editor | Xu Shaohang

“The brain-computer interface (BCI) industry has gradually emerged since 2020 and has now completed its first stage of development.” On May 28, Zhang Qi, Director and Vice President of OYMotion, stated this to media reporters, including those from the National Business Daily.

In his view, during the first phase, various technologies demonstrated their unique advantages, but their limitations have gradually been recognized by the industry. Next, brain-computer interfaces will enter the second phase—the eve of commercial deployment. In this phase, the focus will shift from the technology itself to the integration of technology with application scenarios, the convergence among different technologies, and the alignment of technology with business models.

On the same day, OYMotion and MicroPort NeuroTech (02172.HK, share price HK$9.2, total market capitalization HK$5.382 billion) officially signed a strategic cooperation agreement, under which both parties will jointly develop an “Interventional Brain-Computer Interface Rehabilitation System.”

What has drawn industry attention is that OYMotion is currently the only hard-tech enterprise in China to simultaneously operate in both the brain-computer interface and embodied intelligence sectors, earning it the title of one of the “Four Little Dragons of Dextrous Hands.” Minimally Invasive Brain Science (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. is a Hong Kong-listed company under the MicroPort Scientific Corporation group, specializing in interventional treatment devices for hemorrhagic and ischemic stroke. It holds Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certification—the fundamental standard for pharmaceutical production and quality management—and possesses over 200 authorized patents, including overseas patents.

According to NBD reporters, the two parties will jointly tackle key challenges in hardware-software integration, signal transmission, and user experience optimization, striving to ensure low latency, high stability, and high precision from neural signal decoding to exoskeleton motion execution. The application scenarios will primarily focus on two areas: medical rehabilitation and expanding the boundaries of human-machine interaction.

In 2026, brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) are moving further from the laboratory into real-world applications. Industrialization is no longer a distant concept, with the medical sector regarded as the primary scenario for initial deployment. Against this backdrop, external assessments of corporate value have shifted beyond mere technical concepts and patent counts to focus more on clinical validation capabilities, medical device regulatory approvals, and progress in commercial implementation.

Notably, as recently as March this year, OYMotion announced the completion of its Series C1 financing round, led by the Shenzhen Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Industry Investment Fund under CICC Capital, with continued participation from multiple existing shareholders.

Regarding this collaboration, Zhang Jie, Chairman of the Board of Minimally Invasive Brain Science, told National Business Daily reporters that the division of labor between the two parties could be summarized in one sentence: Minimally Invasive Brain Science is responsible for the brain-related aspects, while OYMotion is responsible for the limb-related aspects.

“From the perspective of role division, Minimally Invasive Brain Science is responsible for building the overall system of brain-computer interface technology, including product design and clinical validation,” said Zhang Jie. With over a decade of experience in neurointervention, MicroPort will focus on invasive and semi-invasive approaches in brain-computer interfaces, ultimately developing medical device products for clinical application.

Meanwhile, he also mentioned that MicroPort has many years of experience in medical device product development, registration processes, and commercialization channels, providing future opportunities to realize the implementation of brain-computer interface products and even expand overseas.

According to reports, the first deliverable of the collaboration between the two parties, in terms of product development, will be a multi-channel endovascular brain-computer interface (BCI) system. Unlike traditional invasive BCI approaches that require craniotomy, this system adopts a minimally invasive endovascular approach, delivering signal-acquisition stents via blood vessels to target brain regions. It enables high-quality intracranial electroencephalographic (EEG) signal acquisition without the need for skull opening, thereby balancing clinical safety with signal precision.

BOC International (China) SecuritiesRelevant research reports mention that, based on different methods and technologies of signal acquisition, Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) can be classified into two categories: implanted and non-implanted. Implanted BCIs require surgical procedures to permanently or long-term implant the device or part of it into the brain. Implanted BCI devices are typically located within the body (such as subcutaneously, intracranially, on the surface of brain tissue, or within brain tissue), and are generally divided into two types: invasive BCIs and semi-invasive BCIs.

The report posits that, from a technical perspective, endovascular BCI should be classified as a subtype of implantable BCI. The report indicates that with advancements in signal acquisition technology, endovascular BCI—which enables direct communication between the brain and external devices via minimally invasive interventional techniques—has evolved. The core feature of this technology is the implantation of micro-sensors or electrodes into specific brain regions (such as the motor cortex) through vascular access points (similar to cardiac stent procedures), thereby eliminating the need for craniotomy or skull penetration.

Zhang Jie stated that, from the perspective of brain-computer interface (BCI) technological pathways, non-invasive, semi-invasive, and invasive approaches differ in terms of R&D difficulty, clinical application, and commercial promotion models.

In his view, the public is prone to becoming engrossed in science-fiction narratives surrounding brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), while overlooking the significant clinical risks associated with invasive BCIs entering the brain. The industry’s development cannot be achieved overnight; it requires gradual refinement throughout the processes of technological advancement, clinical application, and medical-engineering translation to ultimately achieve clinical implementation and commercialization.

“This process demands collaboration above all else; it is not about a single voice, but rather about multiple parties leveraging their respective technological strengths and accumulated expertise to advance together,” said Zhang Jie.

Notably, in terms of downstream applications of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), the healthcare sector holds significant market potential. According to McKinsey’s estimates, the global market size for BCIs in medical applications is projected to reach $40 billion by 2030 and exceed $145 billion by 2040.

In fact, 2026 is a pivotal year for the development of the brain-computer interface industry.

At the start of 2026, Elon Musk revealed on social media that his brain-computer interface (BCI) company, Neuralink, would commence high-volume production of its BCI devices in 2026 and advance a highly streamlined, nearly fully automated surgical procedure.

According to public reports, in March this year, the National Medical Products Administration approved the innovative product registration application for the implantable brain-computer interface (BCI) hand motor function compensation system developed by NeuroXess Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., marking the global debut of a BCI medical device and signifying that the world’s first invasive BCI medical device has entered the clinical application phase.

Additionally, according to the joint report released on April 1 this year by the Fourth Wave of Technology Think Tank in BeijingZhongguancunThe "China Brain-Computer Interface Commercialization Outlook Report," released by the Tiancheng Innovation Research Center, indicates that financing activities among brain-computer interface (BCI) enterprises are currently unprecedentedly active. Data shows that there were 24 to 26 BCI financing events in 2025, with a total funding amount approaching RMB 1.45 billion. In 2026, the influx of capital has accelerated significantly; as of March 19, 17 investment and financing transactions had already occurred in this field, totaling RMB 3.803 billion—far exceeding the full-year scale of 2025 in less than three months. The report also projects that China's BCI market size is expected to surpass RMB 5 billion in 2026 and maintain rapid growth, with the market size anticipated to exceed RMB 15 billion by 2030.

Against this backdrop, companies involved in brain-computer interfaces have begun to emphasize their industrialization capabilities.

According to OYMotion, this collaboration represents not only an expansion of technological pathways but also a strategic leap, marking OYMotion’s comprehensive acceleration toward becoming a platform-based brain-computer interface (BCI) enterprise by integrating diverse technological approaches, starting from non-invasive BCI.

Zhang Dongdong, Director of the Brain Science Division at OYMotion, stated that, in pursuit of this goal, OYMotion will simultaneously advance three strategic pillars: integrating multimodal technologies to accelerate the commercialization of brain-computer interfaces (BCI); expanding from breakthroughs in single diseases to coverage of multiple indications and fostering open industry collaborations; and building a comprehensive upstream and downstream BCI ecosystem spanning from research and development to application.

In the field of hybrid invasive and non-invasive approaches, Zhang Dongdong further pointed out that multimodal interaction will inevitably become a crucial pathway for the practical application of brain-computer interface (BCI) technology, “and it is also the key direction we will focus on exploring in the future.”

In an interview, Zhang Qi stated that OYMotion’s expansion toward becoming a platform-based enterprise in the brain-computer interface (BCI) sector is driven, first, by its self-sustaining revenue generation capabilities and financial reserves; second, by its unique shareholder structure, which aggregates and integrates core resources essential for BCI commercialization. In his view, OYMotion has essentially secured nearly all the critical upstream and downstream resources required for the practical implementation of BCI technologies.

Furthermore, in his view, OYMotion spans the two major sectors of brain-computer interfaces (BCI) and embodied intelligence, possessing advantages in its technological ecosystem. In the BCI domain, OYMotion has full-chain capabilities ranging from the acquisition of brain and electromyographic (EMG) signals to AI-based intent decoding, and its “brain-muscle-machine” integrated rehabilitation devices have obtained medical device certification. In the field of embodied intelligence, OYMotion is one of the few companies offering dexterous hands with mass production and delivery capabilities, as well as complete independent intellectual property rights and a proprietary supply chain system.

Notably, companies within the industry have begun to intensify capacity expansion and accelerate the deployment of mass production.

According to the official WeChat account of NeuroXess, a life sciences technology company, on January 13, construction of NeuroXess’s “Super Factory” officially commenced in the Ganjiang New Area. This facility will be responsible for the mass production of China’s first and the world’s second “fully implantable, fully wireless, and fully functional” brain-computer interface system.

Against this backdrop, at what stage is the commercial implementation of brain-computer interfaces?

According to Zhang Qi, attention from both the primary and secondary markets toward the brain-computer interface (BCI) sector continues to rise. From the perspective of medical devices, only one company in China has successfully launched a BCI product; strictly speaking, the industry has not yet achieved large-scale commercialization.

Zhang Qi believes that if included in the scope of pan-neural interfaces, neuromodulation, brain-computer control, and electromechanical products have completed commercial validation. Overall, the industry is still on the eve of a large-scale commercial explosion.

Xie Zhiyong, CEO of Minimally Invasive Brain Science (Suzhou) Co., Ltd., told National Business Daily reporters that the pace of capital investment and policy advancement is significantly ahead of the industry’s actual commercialization progress. Although there are numerous EEG research teams and enterprises worldwide, the sector as a whole remains in its early stages.

In fact, the acceleration of industrial evolution also means that the market will undergo a process of survival of the fittest. For companies deploying brain-computer interfaces, only by stepping out of science fiction narratives and focusing on deep technological development in scenarios with rigid demand can this cutting-edge technology truly benefit the public.

Cover image source: AIGC