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Cortical Labs demonstrated its CL1 biological-computing platform controlling the 1993 game Doom with cultured human neurons. Game events were translated into electrical stimulation for the cells, and their activity was converted back into game controls. It was a rudimentary company demonstration—not a brain independently running a game, a human-like mind, or evidence of general-purpose computing.
How the CL1 demonstration worked
The setup paired living neural cultures with a silicon-based electrical interface. In the reported demonstration, information from the game was encoded as electrical stimulation patterns delivered to the cells. The cells’ resulting activity was read through the interface and translated into control responses in Doom. Tom’s Hardware and Scientific American reported on the demonstration in 2026; neither account establishes a peer-reviewed Doom experiment.
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Doom - Xbox One | $26.99 | Buy on Amazon |
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Scientific American reported that the neurons were generated from reprogrammed donor cells, such as skin or blood cells, rather than taken from a donor’s brain. The electrical interface served as the channel between the biological cells and silicon. Those are details reported about the platform and demonstration, not a guarantee about every culture used in every setup.
What the gameplay does—and doesn’t—show
Coverage described the character moving, encountering enemies, firing, and dying frequently. That is evidence of a basic input-and-output loop involving neural activity; it is not evidence of competent play by human standards. Cortical Labs chief scientific officer Brett Kagan told Scientific American, “Is it an eSports champion? Absolutely not.”
#1 Best Overall
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Tom’s Hardware reported Kagan describing the demo as “adaptive real-time goal-directed learning.” That is his characterization, not an independently established measure of cognition. Kagan also cautioned against treating the cells as a person or animal: “But this isn’t an animal or a human or anything even as complex as an insect. It’s a system. It’s kind of like saying, ‘Does a computer like or dislike the reward function on a [reinforcement-learning] model?’”
Why reports give two different neuron counts
The numbers in coverage refer to different things, so they should not be combined:
Rank #2
- Developed by id Software, DOOM: The Dark Ages is the prequel to the critically acclaimed DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal that tells the epic cinematic origin story of the DOOM Slayer’s rage.
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| Figure | What it describes | Source and context |
|---|---|---|
| Around 200,000 living human neurons | The neurons reported for the Doom demonstration | Tom’s Hardware, 2026 |
| About 800,000 neurons per computing unit | A reported platform capacity, not the count for the Doom run | Scientific American, 2026 |
These are reported neuron counts, not measures of game skill or computing speed. The coverage reviewed did not establish an independent Doom benchmark, a controlled comparison, or a general-purpose computing performance statistic.
Doom is not the DishBrain Pong experiment
The Doom demonstration is distinct from DishBrain, a peer-reviewed 2022 study of cultured human- and rodent-derived neural networks embodied in a simulated Pong environment. That paper reported on neural cultures interacting with Pong, not Doom: Kagan et al., “In vitro neurons learn and exhibit sentience when embodied in a simulated game-world,” Neuron (2022).
Rank #3
- Developed by id Software, DOOM: The Dark Ages is the prequel to the critically acclaimed DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal that tells the epic cinematic origin story of the DOOM Slayer’s rage.
- In this third installment of the modern DOOM series, players will step into the blood-stained boots of the DOOM Slayer, in this never-before-seen dark and sinister medieval war against Hell.
- A dark fantasy/sci-fi single-player experience that delivers the searing combat and over-the-top visuals of the incomparable DOOM franchise, powered by the latest idTech engine. With a customizable difficulty system, it’s the perfect entry point whether you’re new to the franchise or a long time fan.
- As the super weapon of gods and kings, shred enemies with devastating favorites like the Super Shotgun while also wielding a variety of new bone-chewing weapons, including the versatile Shield Saw.
- Experience the origin story of the DOOM Slayer’s rage in this epic, cinematic, and action-packed story.
A 2025 comparative paper also examines DishBrain neural-culture dynamics and reinforcement learning. It is not a Doom study and does not supply a performance score for the CL1 demonstration: Khajehnejad et al., “Dynamic Network Plasticity and Sample Efficiency in Biological Neural Cultures: A Comparative Study with Deep Reinforcement Learning,” Cyborg and Bionic Systems (2025).
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to assess claims about biological gaming
A game demonstration can show that a biological interface produces control signals without establishing how much behavior comes from the cells, how well the system performs, or how it compares with conventional computing. Useful comparisons need to match the task and report the interface, biological setup, software contribution, outcome measures, and baseline. Without those details, a leaderboard claim would overstate what the Doom video establishes.
Rank #4
- A Relentless Campaign: There is no taking cover or stopping to regenerate health as you beat back Hell's raging demon hordes
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- Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) Content Description: Blood and gore, intense violence, strong language
Cortical Labs identifies the CL1 as its biological-computing platform on its official website. The Doom demonstration is a striking interface experiment, but the available reporting supports a narrower conclusion: cultured neurons were incorporated into a system that translated between electrical activity and controls in a simple game loop.
Quick Recap
Best Value
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- A new Deathmatch map pack featuring 25 maps
- Total of 187 mission maps and 43 deathmatch maps in DOOM + DOOM II
- # of Players: Single System 1-4, Local wireless 1-8, Online 1-16
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