I n a landmark advancement for neurotechnology, researchers have unveiled a brain implant so small it rivals the size of a single grain of rice. Dubbed the microscale optoelectronic tetherless electrode (MOTE), this ultra-miniature device is not only the tiniest neural implant capable of wireless brain activity monitoring, but it also holds promise for use in other delicate tissues of the body.

Measuring roughly the width of a human hair around 300 microns long and 70 microns wide the implant translates neural activity into pulses of infrared light. These light signals can penetrate brain tissue and bone to reach a remote receiver, allowing high-resolution monitoring without physical wires. Alyosha Molnar, an electrical engineer at Cornell University and co-author of the study, remarked

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