BCI in numbers
How much is being published, trialled and reported on brain-computer interfaces, counted from public databases.
Every chart shows the exact query used and the date it was run. The numbers are counts returned by the source, not estimates. Hover or focus a mark for its value; a table view sits under each chart.
Papers on BCI in 2025
5,019
5,410 so far in 2026
Registered clinical trials
329
all years, ClinicalTrials.gov
News articles last month
30
2026-09, GDELT
Headlines on the wire
13
last 14 days
Research papers
Where the research is growing
Papers per year for six topics, 2010 to 2026. Each row is shaded relative to its own busiest year, so topics of very different size can be read side by side. 2026 is year to date.
Table view
| Topic | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All BCI | 966 | 1,184 | 1,252 | 1,653 | 1,693 | 1,767 | 2,011 | 1,903 | 2,199 | 2,248 | 2,454 | 2,652 | 2,761 | 3,037 | 3,592 | 5,019 | 5,410 |
| Speech decoding | 175 | 160 | 206 | 239 | 265 | 282 | 307 | 317 | 376 | 361 | 419 | 438 | 409 | 525 | 679 | 943 | 1,022 |
| EEG-based | 375 | 428 | 525 | 651 | 674 | 728 | 1,017 | 859 | 1,064 | 1,074 | 1,172 | 1,329 | 1,443 | 1,518 | 1,863 | 2,401 | 2,345 |
| Intracortical / ECoG | 35 | 39 | 42 | 58 | 63 | 42 | 58 | 74 | 70 | 76 | 85 | 84 | 81 | 109 | 130 | 195 | 229 |
| Endovascular | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 17 | 24 | 35 | 30 |
| Deep learning | 34 | 41 | 42 | 56 | 57 | 67 | 82 | 125 | 235 | 304 | 400 | 535 | 671 | 802 | 978 | 1,337 | 1,156 |
Source: OpenAlex, title and abstract search; the query for each topic is listed under Method. Fetched 2026-10-07.
Growth since 2015
Topics indexed to 100 in 2015, so the lines show how many times each has grown. The scale doubles with each gridline, which keeps a tenfold rise and a threefold rise readable on one chart. Speech decoding is highlighted. 2026 is year to date. Left out: Endovascular, with fewer than 10 papers in 2015, too few to index.
- All BCI: ×3.1
- Speech decoding: ×3.6
- EEG-based: ×3.2
- Intracortical / ECoG: ×5.5
- Deep learning: ×17.3
Table view
| Topic | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All BCI | 1,767 | 2,011 | 1,903 | 2,199 | 2,248 | 2,454 | 2,652 | 2,761 | 3,037 | 3,592 | 5,019 | 5,410 |
| Speech decoding | 282 | 307 | 317 | 376 | 361 | 419 | 438 | 409 | 525 | 679 | 943 | 1,022 |
| EEG-based | 728 | 1,017 | 859 | 1,064 | 1,074 | 1,172 | 1,329 | 1,443 | 1,518 | 1,863 | 2,401 | 2,345 |
| Intracortical / ECoG | 42 | 58 | 74 | 70 | 76 | 85 | 84 | 81 | 109 | 130 | 195 | 229 |
| Deep learning | 67 | 82 | 125 | 235 | 304 | 400 | 535 | 671 | 802 | 978 | 1,337 | 1,156 |
Source: OpenAlex, fetched 2026-10-07. Indexing divides each year by the topic's 2015 count.
Who publishes
Countries publishing BCI research
Papers 2024-2026 by the countries of their authors' institutions. A paper with authors in two countries counts for both.
Table view
| Category | Papers |
|---|---|
| China | 3,594 |
| United States | 1,668 |
| India | 1,218 |
| United Kingdom | 538 |
| Germany | 325 |
| South Korea | 314 |
| France | 312 |
| Italy | 311 |
| Japan | 301 |
| Canada | 226 |
Source: OpenAlex, fetched 2026-10-07.
Institutions publishing BCI research
Papers 2024-2026 by author institution, including sub-institutes of each organisation.
Table view
| Category | Papers |
|---|---|
| Chinese Academy of Sciences | 399 |
| Centre National de la Reche… | 192 |
| Tsinghua University | 168 |
| Zhejiang University | 166 |
| Tianjin University | 163 |
| Shanghai Jiao Tong Universi… | 155 |
| University of Chinese Acade… | 134 |
| Fudan University | 126 |
| Harvard University | 124 |
| Ministry of Industry and In… | 110 |
Source: OpenAlex, fetched 2026-10-07.
Clinical trials
Clinical trials by start year and stage
Studies on ClinicalTrials.gov matching the search term, stacked by the status recorded today. 2026 includes studies planned to start later this year.
- Not yet recruiting
- Recruiting
- Active, not recruiting
- Completed
- Other (terminated, withdrawn, unknown)
Table view
| Year | Not yet recruiting | Recruiting | Active, not recruiting | Completed | Other (terminated, withdrawn, unknown) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2006 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 2008 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 2009 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 2010 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| 2011 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 9 |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 7 |
| 2013 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 16 |
| 2014 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 12 |
| 2015 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 16 |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| 2017 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 13 |
| 2018 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 17 |
| 2019 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 9 | 20 |
| 2020 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 11 |
| 2021 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 20 |
| 2022 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 22 |
| 2023 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 18 |
| 2024 | 1 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 31 |
| 2025 | 5 | 25 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 42 |
| 2026 | 17 | 23 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 43 |
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, search term "brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface" OR "brain-machine interface" OR "neuroprosthesis", 329 studies in total, fetched 2026-10-07.
Where the trials run
Registered studies by the countries of their listed sites. A study with sites in several countries counts for each.
Table view
| Category | Trials |
|---|---|
| United States | 125 |
| France | 28 |
| China | 27 |
| Singapore | 23 |
| Canada | 13 |
| Switzerland | 11 |
| United Kingdom | 7 |
| Italy | 7 |
| Russia | 6 |
| Germany | 6 |
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, fetched 2026-10-07.
News coverage
News coverage, day by day
Online news articles in the GDELT index that mention the phrase "brain-computer interface". One cell per day for the last year; darker means more articles that day. Monthly totals are in the table.
Table view
| Month | Articles |
|---|---|
| 2024-10 | 30 |
| 2024-11 | 55 |
| 2024-12 | 50 |
| 2025-01 | 113 |
| 2025-02 | 133 |
| 2025-03 | 126 |
| 2025-04 | 159 |
| 2025-05 | 104 |
| 2025-06 | 60 |
| 2025-07 | 88 |
| 2025-08 | 209 |
| 2025-09 | 73 |
| 2025-10 | 72 |
| 2025-11 | 123 |
| 2025-12 | 106 |
| 2026-01 | 200 |
| 2026-02 | 58 |
| 2026-03 | 115 |
| 2026-04 | 69 |
| 2026-05 | 96 |
| 2026-06 | 125 |
| 2026-07 | 92 |
| 2026-08 | 64 |
| 2026-09 | 30 |
Source: GDELT DOC 2.0 API, query "brain-computer interface", fetched 2026-10-07. GDELT indexes a sample of global online news.
Method
Paper counts come from OpenAlex, an open index of scholarly works, using a search over titles and abstracts. A work is counted once per topic it matches, so topics overlap and do not sum to the total. OpenAlex includes journal articles, conference papers, preprints and some duplicates, and its records for recent years keep growing for months after publication. Country and institution counts use the affiliations OpenAlex records for each author; a paper with authors in several places counts once for each.
Trial counts come from ClinicalTrials.gov, the United States registry, using its search API with the term shown. Trials registered elsewhere, for example in the EU or Chinese registries, are not included. Start year is the date the sponsor entered, which for planned studies lies in the future. Stage is the overall status recorded on the day of the fetch.
News counts come from the GDELT Project, which monitors online news worldwide and returns the number of articles in its index that contain the phrase. It is a measure of coverage in GDELT's sample, not a complete count of everything published. Calendar shading uses the distribution of daily counts over the year, so the darkest cells are the busiest few days.
The data is refreshed about once a week when the site is rebuilt. The fetch date on each chart is the date the numbers were retrieved.
Topic queries
- Brain-computer interfaces (all):
"brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface" OR "brain-machine interface" OR "brain machine interface" - Speech and communication decoding:
("speech" OR "communication") AND ("brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface" OR "neuroprosthesis" OR "neural decoding") - EEG-based BCI:
EEG AND ("brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface") - Intracortical and ECoG recording for BCI:
("intracortical" OR "electrocorticography" OR "ECoG" OR "microelectrode array") AND ("brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface" OR "neuroprosthesis") - Endovascular BCI:
("endovascular" OR "stentrode") AND ("brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface" OR "neural interface") - Deep learning for neural decoding:
("deep learning" OR "neural network" OR "transformer") AND ("neural decoding" OR "brain-computer interface" OR "brain computer interface")
Facts on this page are drawn from the sources listed and were accurate to the best of our knowledge on the update date shown. Company and product names are trademarks of their owners and are used for identification only. Nothing here is medical, investment or legal advice. Companies and individuals can request a correction via the corrections page.