Johnson founded Kernel in 2016 and began researching neuroprosthetics, devices implanted into the brain that mimic, substitute, or assist brain functions. In May 2020, Kernel unveiled two brain-activity monitoring devices. The devices resemble a helmet covered with sensors and have the ability to see and record brain activity, allowing scientists to more easily and quickly analyze neurons. Flux measures electromagnetic activity, and another called Flow pulses the brain with light to measure changes in blood metabolism. Kernel uses specially designed hardware to prevent environmental interference, custom microchips to process signals, and software algorithms for analyzing brain activity. The company shrunk large, room-sized machines down to the size of a wearable bicycle helmet, which allows people to be more mobile as they are monitored. The devices are expected to become available for purchase in late 2021. Potential applications of the technology include assisting paralyzed individuals with communication and tracking mental functions, such as creativity or anxiety. Same year, Kernel released a demonstration of "Sound ID" that can tell what speech or song a person is listening to just from brain data, which Bloomberg called “a sort of Shazam for the mind”, referring to the popular music-recognition app, Shazam. Kernel was featured in the 2020 documentary, I Am Human, about brain-machine interfaces. Kernel recently raised $53 million to accelerate development of a new generation of brain tech. In 2020, music producer and DJ, Steve Aoki, tried one of Kernel's helmets with Sound ID technology. He calibrated the helmet by listening to recordings of speech and music, while the Kernel software analyzed Aoki's brain activity. When a technician played various Aoki songs, a computer that was unaware of the song being played, could identify the song being played by examining Aoki's brain activity.
Operations
Johnson, who has said the future of humanity will be a combination of human and artificial intelligence, says Kernel's objective is "to read and write the underlying functions of the brain." As of 2019, the company is researching neurological diseases and dysfunctions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, depression and anxiety. Kernel is one of several companies researching links between the human brain and computer interfaces, including Neuralink and Facebook. Kernel also offers neuroscience as a service to scientists and businesses, conducting subject testing at their office.
