Our Vision¶
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An expedited future where whole brain emulation benefits humanity and individuals.
Our Mission¶
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To identify, facilitate, and conduct the research which will deliver whole brain emulation.
Carboncopies advances whole brain emulation through research, education, and connecting people working toward that goal. That includes our own research initiatives, such as the Brain Emulation Challenge, alongside education and opportunities to contribute.
What is Whole Brain Emulation (WBE)?¶
Whole brain emulation is a technological protocol that may someday be able to reverse-engineer a biological brain in order to functionally emulate its neurobiological processes on a different substrate (or "platform"). Emulation will be done in a way that will generate the cognitive experience that was achieved by the original brain.
The human experience thrives on the capabilities of the human brain, and is at the same time constrained by its limitations. Our most human qualities are our resourcefulness, our ability to understand ourselves and the universe we live in, and our ability to create and to improve both our environment and ourselves. We wear clothes, we live in houses, we teach our children, we heal the sick. Consequently, we live longer and better, and we can do and experience far more than our ancestors ever could. It is especially human to overcome natural limitations.
What we are personally aware of, what we can understand, where and how we are able to live, and what we may accomplish are still determined by a body and brain that evolved to fit a niche in the early Pleistocene, 2.5 million years ago. Our machines are now able to think and plan in 15 dimensions, to process and respond to events in a universe at the micro- and nanosecond temporal scale. They can comfortably inhabit and travel through the vacuum of space. However, we ourselves cannot do those things and are therefore effectively shut out of those realities. In fact, we cannot even reliably and accurately remember things - our retrieved memories are constructed approximations. The machines we design are able to upgrade and advance. Outcomes and experience with a computer program can improve simply by running it on a better processor. Unfortunately, the biology of a brain is not equipped for back-ups or fundamental improvements.
Progress in the field of neural prosthesis shows that, in principle, if we can record enough data about detailed brain structure and dynamic brain activity, then we can produce a neuroprosthetic system that is able to serve the same functions as the brain. This system could safely back up its state and receive incremental upgrades to its physical design and implementation. Whole brain emulation could be applied in this manner to brain-specific neuroprosthetic systems, and eventually, patient-specific clinical neuroprosthetics.
To learn more, please see this blog article.
What is the goal of the Carboncopies Foundation?¶
The Carboncopies Foundation is guided by a steadfast vision of an expedited future where whole brain emulation benefits humanity and individuals. We believe that the possibilities and opportunities presented by the science and technology of whole brain emulation are essential components for the most promising routes to overcoming our greatest challenges and fundamental limitations as a culture, as a society, and as individuals.
The positive implications of whole brain emulation are profound and wide-ranging. They include accelerated neuroscience research, developments in artificial intelligence, and consequent applications in clinical neuroscience and neurological medicine. For this reason, our vision is not just to achieve whole brain emulation, but to do so as soon as possible, with many beneficial outcomes along the way. The sooner these technologies become real options, the better the odds that generations alive today can benefit.
At the same time, the Foundation is keenly aware that the introduction of significant technological advances can present risks as well. This is why the core of our vision is that whole brain emulation must benefit humanity as a whole as well as individuals. We take great care in our work to ensure that the development and application of whole brain emulation is comprehensively thought through, that they will improve quality of life, and that the availability of advancements will be universal and fair. We are a very diverse and international non-profit organization. Our members come from a wide range of countries and cultures, and we invite participation from every demographic.
What does Carboncopies do?¶
There is a long way to go before whole brain emulation can become a reality, and with it, the freedom to explore inconceivable new avenues of creative and intelligent development. Significant strides must be made in the fields of neurobiology, brain imaging, data analysis, computational neuroscience, computational model design, and even in disciplines such as the philosophy of mind.
At the Carboncopies Foundation, it is our mission to identify, facilitate, and directly conduct the research that will deliver whole brain emulation. We have built — and always continue to grow — a network of scientists across disciplines to match the needs of R&D; toward whole brain emulation. Researchers on our team are familiar with cutting-edge technologies. They closely follow pioneering advances in the areas listed above that affect the development of brain emulation and partial or complete neural prosthesis. Events organized and materials published by the Foundation shine a light on issues that are most in need of better comprehension, attention and support. Whenever possible, we endeavor to facilitate, launch, and support projects. In specific cases, the scientists and engineers on our team engage directly with the research required.
There is no magic bullet in the development of whole brain emulation. There is no guarantee that exponential advances in technology will save the day. Whole brain emulation cannot be achieved unless we fully recognize and understand the enormity of this ambitious goal. Success depends entirely on rigorous adherence to the tenets of the scientific method and its application, on vigorous collaboration, and on deliberative and ongoing peer review.
What conditions do we want to make possible?¶
We want to make it possible for people to understand, contribute to, and make measurable progress toward whole brain emulation. This means creating conditions where:
- Researchers have the tools and evidence to develop and test emulations.
- People can learn about WBE, including its limitations and unresolved questions.
- People with relevant skills can find each other and opportunities to contribute.
- Progress can be evaluated clearly, with shared criteria for what counts as successful emulation.
Our Origin¶
Carboncopies grew out of a question one neuroscience student started asking in the 1990s: could the workings of a particular mind be carried over to a new substrate? Here is how that question became a foundation.
The spark
While studying in Delft, Randal Koene finds Joe Strout's Mind Uploading Home Page and joins the discussion group around it.
A name for the goal
Koene proposes the term whole brain emulation for reproducing a specific brain's function on another substrate.
Oxford workshop
Koene joins the Future of Humanity Institute's workshop on Whole Brain Emulation at the University of Oxford.
The Roadmap
Sandberg & Bostrom publish Whole Brain Emulation: A Roadmap, the field's first technical survey of what it would take.
Carboncopies is born
Randal Koene and Suzanne Gildert found Carboncopies. Its first online workshop, Advancing Substrate Independent Minds, runs on June 5.
A growing network
Around 25 affiliated researchers and a community of about 200 people now gather around Carboncopies.
Carboncopies Foundation
The IRS recognizes the Carboncopies Foundation as a 501(c)(3) non-profit.
Workshops, round two
A new public workshop series begins, from reverse engineering the brain to metaphysics and ethics.
Revisiting the Roadmap
A review of the Oxford Roadmap with original participants opens a six-part series updating it.
BrainGenix & the Challenge
The Brain Emulation Challenge takes shape on our BrainGenix platform: synthetic brains with known ground truth.
Out in the field
A Challenge workshop in February, and a poster at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in San Diego in November.
Who are we?¶
The Carboncopies Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides support to scientists working on challenges critical to whole brain emulation. Legally incorporated in California, USA, we are an international organization with team members on almost every continent. Our team members contribute a wide range of backgrounds and experience levels; take a look at our Team page to meet us, and let us know if you'd like to get involved!
