AI System YORU Enables Real-Time Control of Animal Behavior by Targeting Specific Neurons
Researchers at Nagoya University have developed YORU, an AI system that identifies animal behaviors with over 90% accuracy and controls corresponding brain circuits in real-time.
Scientists at Nagoya University, in collaboration with Osaka University and Tohoku University, have developed an AI system named YORU (Your Optimal Recognition Utility) that identifies animal behaviors with over 90% accuracy and controls the specific brain circuits responsible for these behaviors in real-time.
In a laboratory demonstration, a male fruit fly began its courtship song by extending its wings and vibrating them. Upon detection of this behavior, YORU activated a green light that silenced the neurons responsible for the song, causing the male to cease its performance and the female to lose interest.
YORU's capabilities extend across species, accurately recognizing behaviors such as food-sharing in ants, social orientation in zebrafish, and grooming in mice. The system operates 30% faster than existing tools by analyzing entire behaviors from single video frames, rather than tracking individual body parts over time.
The integration of YORU with optogenetics allows for precise control of individual animals within social groups. Previous methods illuminated entire chambers, affecting all subjects simultaneously. YORU's AI-driven light source can now target a single subject's neurons while neighboring animals remain unaffected.
YORU is accessible online, requiring minimal training data and no programming skills, providing researchers worldwide with a powerful tool to study the neural mechanisms underlying social interactions.