What it really takes to bring brain tech to market

Brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) have captured the imagination of the tech world – offering the promise of seamless communication between mind and machine. But behind the excitement (because novel ways of communicating with machines are very exciting, aren’t they?) lies a complex reality: creating BCIs that are reliable and scalable in the real world takes years of innovation, iteration, and persistence.

We asked two of the field’s leading voices (who’ve both spoken at LEAP, by the way) to share their perspective on the real-world challenges of bringing BCIs to market: meet Dr. Ramses Alcaide (President and CEO at Neurable) and Professor Thomas Oxley (CEO at Synchron). 

Their experiences offer a glimpse into the long road from research lab to clinical trial to commercial product.

Finding product-market fit in an emerging industry

Dr. Alcaide said one of the most difficult early hurdles was identifying exactly how and where a BCI could deliver the most value: “One of the primary hurdles we encountered was finding the right product-market fit.” 

“The landscape of BCIs is vast, and identifying the most impactful applications that align with market needs requires thorough exploration and understanding.”

To address this, the Neurable team leaned into user research – and dedicated themselves to collaboration across fields of expertise.

“We conducted extensive user research and collaborated closely with potential users, clinicians, and industry experts to refine our product offering.”

“This iterative process was instrumental in tailoring our BCI technology to address real-world challenges and deliver tangible benefits.”

Achieving reliability at scale

Beyond finding the right use case, making BCI technology work reliably for a wide range of people, and across different environments and physiological variables, presented another set of challenges. “The intricacies of human brain activity and the diversity among users posed unique obstacles,” added Alcaide. 

Meeting those challenges meant investing heavily in R&D.

“This involved refining algorithms, developing AI, optimising sensor technologies, and addressing potential sources of interference.”

“Collaborating with academic researchers and industry partners allowed us to leverage a diverse range of expertise, accelerating our progress in overcoming performance challenges.”

From operating theatre to clinical trial

For Professor Thomas Oxley, the path to building a commercial BCI was forged in the operating theatre. With a background in interventional neurology, he had performed over 1,600 endovascular neurosurgical procedures – and those experiences shaped the foundation for Synchron’s approach.

“When I was in medical school, I often saw patients struggling from neurological disease – with fully functioning minds but unable to move or communicate,” he said.

“I often felt frustrated by the inability to treat or help patients living in these conditions.”

That frustration drove the idea of delivering BCI technology using catheter-based techniques – already in use for heart attacks and strokes – to reach the brain through the vascular system.

“Think of the vascular system as the brain's natural highways,” he explained. “If we can reach previously unreachable parts of the brain, we can learn about them.”

In 2025, Synchron unveiled Chiral™, the world’s first cognitive AI brain foundation model, trained directly on neural data to interpret user intent in real time. 

“Over the last 12 years, we’ve seen patients do things like shop, control environmental tech, communicate with loved ones and play Pong,” Oxley told us. “We believe we’ve built a decoder that will work out of the box and won’t require individual automation. This is fundamental in making our device easy to use and is an advancement we’re really excited about.”

Innovation requires persistence (and community)

Whether to help refine algorithms or navigate clinical trials, both innovators emphasised the importance of collaboration and community. 

“Establishing partnerships and collaborations within the tech ecosystem was essential,” said Alcaide. “Engaging with developers, businesses, and research institutions facilitated the integration of our BCI technology into various applications, fostering a more seamless and versatile user experience.”

And for Oxley, being surrounded by people pushing boundaries is part of what makes events like LEAP so powerful:

“It’s a special thing to be in the same room as so many brilliant people, pushing tech forward.”

The future is closer than we think 

The journey to bring BCI tech to market is long. But it is accelerating. With companies like Neurable and Synchron leading the way, we’re already seeing breakthroughs that were once the stuff of science fiction.

Join us in Riyadh for LEAP 2026 to meet the founders who are co-creating the future. Pre-register now.