Restoring VIsion via native-Code-Aligned Neurostimulation

Loss of sensory function due to disease or trauma can, in principle, be restored by brain–machine interfaces (BMIs) that reintroduce sensory information directly into the brain, bypassing damaged neural pathways. While cochlear implants have revolutionized hearing restoration, comparable progress in visual prosthetics has been limited.

Two key challenges remain largely unaddressed:

1. BMI stimulation interacts with, rather than replaces, the brain’s ongoing spontaneous activity;

2. effective perception requires stimulation that respects the brain’s native sensory code rather than simply driving neurons retinotopically.

REVICAN aims to overcome these challenges by:
(a) developing novel closed-loop stimulation control systems capable of dynamically compensating for ongoing neural fluctuations to achieve precise activity control; and
(b) creating computationally principled stimulation strategies that align with native visual representations in the cortex, enabling stimulation protocols that evoke naturalistic percepts.

This interdisciplinary initiative unites leading European and US academic and industrial partners across multiple fields, including:

• neuroscience: UNIFR, UMH, SU, KNAW, UPIT, UT;

• medicine: KMU, BIPH;

• engineering: UNEW, RV, PX, IT;

• computational modelling: CU, UCSB, UW;

• ethics: UNEW.

The consortium integrates experimental, computational, and translational expertise to advance the next generation of visual neuroprosthetics. Tight coordination and knowledge exchange across disciplines will be ensured through a strategically designed programme of staff exchanges, fully aligned with the MSCA Staff Exchange mission to foster international, intersectoral, and interdisciplinary collaboration.