At the turn of 2025 and 2026, the Russian company Neiry successfully testeda revolutionary brain interface that allowed it to control the flight of pigeons. The pigeons followed commands sent directly to their brains, turning right or left, and returned to base after a few hours.
In addition to the device that transmits signals to the "control center," the pigeons have a camera attached to their chest, which essentially makes them bio-drones. As the British daily The Times pointed out, no one has yet repeated the tests, but in theory, these modified birds could be "adapted for military espionage."
"Unlike traditional unmanned aerial vehicles, biological carriers do not require battery replacement or frequent landings, and their natural flight behavior makes them suitable for long distances—up to 400 kilometers without daily stops," the British weekly Week quoted Neiry as saying.
From humans to cows – everyone has chips in their brains
According to founder and director Alexander Panov, the purpose of the PJN-1 project [pronounced similarly to the English word "pigeon" – ed. note] is to implant neural chips similar to those used by American billionaire Elon Musk's company Neuralink into the brains of birds. In January 2024, Neuralink enabled quadriplegic Noland Arbaugh to play chess for the first time, despite being paralyzed from the neck down.
"We are currently focusing on pigeons, but depending on the environment or cargo, other bird species may also be used," said Panov, adding that "we plan to use ravens to transport heavier loads."
Biodrones have several advantages over mechanical devices, Bloombergexplained. Although conventional unmanned aircraft are "easier to control, can carry heavier loads, and do not need to eat or defecate," birds are much more widespread and are therefore suitable for espionage. People are more likely to notice a drone than "another pigeon."
According to the Times, Panov is ahead of competitors from the US and China, who have successfully tested brain-chip interfaces for controlling birds but, unlike the Moscow-based company, have not moved on to the "mass production" phase. Neiry has reportedly also tested neural chips on rats and cows incollaboration with NeuroFarming.
Last year, Chinese scientists used a similar interface to control bees. By connecting "ultra-light controllers," they were able to direct the flight of insects, initially announcing pollination as the intended use.
Controversial background
However, The Times also revealed a connection between Neiry and Katerina Tikhonova, the alleged daughter of Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to the Russian exile portal T-Invariant, the company received grants "on a scale never before seen in Russian neuroscience."
Neira's financial backers include the state fund National Technology Initiative (NTI), which includes theNeuroNet program, oligarch Vladimir Potanin's technology investmentfundVoskhod, and the Moscow State University Institute of Artificial Intelligence, which is headed by Tikhonova.
According to the Times, the head of research on "invasive neural interfaces" at this institute participated in experiments on rats, and other researchers paid from the state budget are also allegedly involved in these revolutionary experiments. Tikhonova also heads the Innopraktika research fund, which has long been supported by the Kremlin.
Panov's stated goal is to create a new evolutionary stage of humanity, which he calls "Homo superior" in his blog. He has repeatedly suggested using his technologies to "reprogram" Ukrainians after the end of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
"Even if only five to seven million useful people remain in Ukraine, they can be reprogrammed just like most other people, and it is much cheaper than creating and raising a person of our own culture," he wrote.
The Telegraph newspaper noted that one of Neira's investors is a state direct investment fund, whose director, Kirill Dmitriev, is one of the leading negotiators with the Americans against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.
Musk did not test on animals
The richest man in the world has recentlymade headlinesby merging SpaceX and xAI, which includes the X network and the Grok chatbot, into one massive technology company. One of the declared goals is to establish a network of orbital data centers, as the visionary believes there is not enough space on Earth.
However, Musk has not commented on Neuralink for some time, which may mean that he is partially leaving this sector to the competition. He is being overtaken by a kind of "Russian Elon" named Panov, and it should also be noted that Neuralinkhasneverindicatedthat it would test its brain chips on animals after reaching the human testing phase.
However, as he has long been known for responding with a considerable dose of sarcasm and irony, he may be reviving the entertaining conspiracy theory "Birds Aren't Real" in response to the Russian experiments.