Kernel

Kernel creates the interfaces and insights necessary to unlock the greatest scientific unknown: the inner workings of the human brain and mind. Kernel is a full-stack neurotech company founded in 2016 with the mandate to do something that will change the world. Kernel is leveraging the best non-invasive brain scanning techniques to create next-generation technologies that dramatically expand the accuracy, frequency, and environments in which cognitive activity can be monitored. Our proprietary technology is designed in-house, and built from the ground up, with neuroscientists, physicists, and engineers controlling every step of the process, from chip design to optics; control software to machine learning; experimental design to analysis. Most noninvasive methods for recording brain signals measure electromagnetic fields generated by groups of neurons, or detect small changes in blood oxygenation (which correlate well to nearby neural activity). But existing technology in both of these technologies are rife with drawbacks, limitations or shortcomings. Kernel is building the next generation of both of these modalities, leveraging the strengths of OP-MEG (optically-pumped magnetoencephalography) and TD-fNIRS (time-domain functional near-infrared spectroscopy) into products that offer the following benefits: • High-quality neural signal • Full-head coverage • Scalability • Relatively low cost • Natural environments, stimuli, and interactions • Freedom of user motion