The challenge of creating brains in a lab

A screen showing human brain cells is photographed at the Swiss start-up FinalSpark in Vevey, on October 3, 2025. Inside a lab in the picturesque Swiss city of Vevey, a scientist feeds tiny clumps of human brain cells the nutrient-rich fluid they need to stay alive. This new field of research, called biocomputing or "wetware," aims to harness the evolutionarily honed — yet still mysterious — computing power of the human brain. | Fabrice Coffrini/AFP via Getty Images They’re growing miniature 3D brains from stem cells. These aren’t your fictional mad scientists’ brains in a vat; they’r