Tongji Hospital Leads National Project to Establish a 'Chinese Solution' for Clinical Application of Brain-Computer Interface

Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the National Health Commission, and the National Medical Products Administration jointly released the "2025 High-end Medical Equipment Application Promotion Project" announcement list. The project, *Promotion and Application of Near-Infrared Brain Function Imaging Equipment*, led by Tongji Hospital affiliated with Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology in collaboration with Danyang Huichuang Medical Equipment Co., Ltd., has been successfully selected. As one of only six brain-computer interface projects approved in China and the only one in Hubei Province, this marks Tongji Hospital's leading role in implementing national strategies and advancing brain-computer interface technology from "frontier exploration" to a "clinically standardized paradigm."

Brain-computer interface (BCI) represents a strategic high ground at the intersection of life sciences and information technology, as well as an important engine for developing new productive forces. However, how to break down the barriers between technology and clinical application, and achieve the leap from lab "black tech" to the clinical "gold standard," remains a shared challenge for the global medical community. The selection of Tongji Hospital not only confirms its profound strength in neuroscience and brain-computer interface but also entrusts it with the significant role of being a national "source of innovation" and "demonstration window." This aims to reshape the diagnosis and treatment landscape of related major diseases through the scaled application of advanced BCI equipment.

This project focuses on functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), a non-invasive optical brain-computer interface technology that overcomes the limitation of traditional imaging devices requiring patients to remain still. It can capture brain activity in natural scenarios such as movement and communication, and is known as "a wearable functional MRI." Tongji Hospital, as a national comprehensive medical center, will rely on its three existing national-level innovation platforms and collaborate with Danyang Huichuang Medical Equipment Co., Ltd., Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Peking University Sixth Hospital, Shanghai Children's Medical Center affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, and 12 other high-level medical institutions (covering multiple national medical centers and national regional medical centers). Together, they will establish a "Medical-Engineering Collaborative Innovation Consortium" to develop end-to-end precision diagnosis and treatment plans for diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, depression, and ADHD.

"We are building not only a network for technology applications, but also an ecosystem for the clinical transformation of brain science." Professor Tang Zhouping, the person in charge of the leading unit of the project and the Party Secretary of Tongji Hospital, emphasized when elaborating on the strategic significance of the project, "During the implementation of the project, we will be committed to establishing a near-infrared brain function atlas database containing 100,000 high-quality data sets, providing solid data assets for China's Brain Project. Meanwhile, we will take the lead in formulating several clinically significant expert consensuses and industry standards, and cultivate a thousand professional talents with the ability to apply cutting-edge brain-computer interface technologies, truly enabling advanced medical equipment to take root in clinical practice and benefit a wide range of patients."

From establishing the second brain-computer interface clinic and ward in China and the first in Central China, to now leading a national promotion project, Tongji Hospital is driving the advancement of brain-computer interface technology out of the laboratory and into clinical frontline with "medical-engineering integration." This not only significantly enhances China's independent innovation capability in the field of brain disease diagnosis and treatment, but also provides a replicable and promotable "Tongji Model" for brain health services under the "Healthy China" strategy.