06/13/2026
Raghavendra Pothukuchi designs brain-computer interfaces to study the brain’s activity, treat diseases and more.
Brain-computer interfaces are small devices that can read and interact with electrical signals in the brain.
In their simplest forms, these interfaces have existed since the 1960s. In more recent decades, these devices have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to compensate for aberrant brain activity in diseases such as epilepsy and Parkinson’s, thereby alleviating symptoms for patients.
“I recognized BCIs as a way to directly help people with debilitating conditions — people who are in desperate need,” said Pothukuchi, an assistant professor in UNC Computer Science .“It was a way to connect to people and serve society.”
Pothukuchi joined The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2025, and he’s already struck up partnerships with biomedical engineers, neuroscientists and neurosurgeons from around the University.
Further, he has enjoyed working with experts in law, ethics and policy who can inform the societal impacts of these technologies — during the design phase, not as an afterthought.
“It says a lot about the culture here,” Pothukuchi said. “Others see something that we can do together and say, ‘let’s join forces.’”
https://go.unc.edu/brain1
