Survival is a natural instinct that leads to a desire to extend one’s life. An increased awareness and improvement in medical sciences have made it possible for humans to live longer and enjoy a better quality of life. The subject of immortality has been dealt with in science fiction but the concept has driven a Russian entrepreneur to launch a hi-tech research project called ‘Avatar’. The immediate aim of the project is to be able to transplant a human brain into a robot body and the timeline to develop the capability is only ten years. Itskov, the Russian entrepreneur, has already started contacting billionaires who can afford to finance the extension of their lives. He has hired 30 scientists to work on the project. Itskov, a media entrepreneur, has written to billionaires listed in Forbes magazine that the technology would become available in their lifetime and that he will personally oversee this process of achieving immortality.
It will End Disease, Old Age and Even Death
The cost of the project or the fee Itskov has quoted to his prospective clients has not been disclosed. But he is confident that there will be many who will be keen to fund his quest for immortality. He calls it ‘cybernetic immortality’ in an ‘artificial body’. He will soon be launching a social media project in order to connect with scientists around the world. He will also have an office in San Francisco that will become operational in summer. The thrust of the research will be in the fields of anthropomorphic robotics, living systems modeling and brain and consciousness modeling. The idea is to create capabilities to transfer individual consciousness to an artificial body. The project has the potential to put an end to disease, old age and control death. Itskov is more than willing to clear any doubts anyone has about the concept and is ready to prove the viability of the project through an expert discussion. He believes that people don’t want to die and he will create the perfect Avatar for them so that continue to be part of the society.
Aim is to Create Artificial Human Brain
Itskov understands that he has taken on a big challenge but he has clear road map ahead. If his plans go as per schedule then it should be possible to surgically transplant a human consciousness into a robot body within 10 years. It should then be possible to upload minds and allow the owners to live on in a robotic body. Itskov, while participating in the Global Future 2045 conference said that he expected the scientists to create a new body for the human being. With a much more improved brain-machine interface he expects the brain to survive outside the body. And finally he believes that the scientific effort will be directed towards the creation of an artificial human brain. He is also hopeful that he will get a chance to work with DARPA, Pentagon’s research arm who are also working on ways to control androids through human mind. Co-incidentally the project is also called Avatar. The project has got a funding of $7 million and is on the way to create interfaces and algorithms that will enable them to make soldier’s surrogates.
