Meet the robot that’s fifty times faster than a brain surgeon
Robots integrated with AI and Machine Vision are becoming increasingly capable surgeons and one day they'll save thousands of lives.
Key takeaways
- Earlier this week scientists in the US revealed a new robotic drill that can cut, excuse the pun, the most sensitive brain surgeries down from two hours to just two and a half minutes, a fifty fold increase in speed.
- The robot, developed at the University of Utah, is being hailed as a breakthrough and its speed means that the patients chances of survival will increase dramatically and cut the risk of infection.
- The research was published in the journal Neurosurgical Focus.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2017) 'Meet the robot that’s fifty times faster than a brain surgeon', 311 Institute, 21 May. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/meet-the-robot-thats-fifty-times-faster-than-a-brain-surgeon/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Earlier this week scientists in the US revealed a new robotic drill that can cut, excuse the pun, the most sensitive brain surgeries down from two hours to just two and a half minutes, a fifty fold increase in speed.
The robot, developed at the University of Utah, is being hailed as a breakthrough and its speed means that the patients chances of survival will increase dramatically and cut the risk of infection. The team also says that the drill produces fast, clean, and safe cuts, reducing the amount of time the wound is open and the patient anaesthetised, which also decreases the chances of human error, as well as the cost of surgery.
Today, by comparison, in complex surgeries, especially cranial surgeries, surgeons typically use hand drills to make intricate openings, and that adds hours to a procedure.
"It was like doing archaeology. We had to slowly take away the bone to avoid sensitive structures,” said Dr William Couldwell, a neurosurgeon at University of Utah, “we knew the technology was already available in the machine world, but no one ever applied it to medical applications."
Under the new system, patients will undergo CT scans to establish the exact location of sensitive structures such as nerves, major veins and arteries that must be avoided, and surgeons can use this information to program the cutting path of the drill and the surgeon can program safety barriers along the cutting path within 1 mm of sensitive structures.
"The software lets the surgeon choose the optimum path from point A to point B, like Google Maps,” said Dr A Balaji, who also worked on the drill, “think of the barriers like a construction zone. You slow down to navigate it safely."
The robot drill, which joins other increasingly famous surgical robots such as STAR which recently operated on a human, and Rosa, a robot that performs intricate brain surgery, does the heavy lifting by removing most of the bone, similar to a mill, accurately and rapidly, and while it hasn’t yet been tested on human patients the team’s planning their first trial in the next couple of months.
The research was published in the journal Neurosurgical Focus.
What this means for your organisation
Time is the clinical risk.
Shorter openings mean less time anaesthetised and exposed, reducing infection risk and cost. Speed here is a safety measure.
Existing technology, new field.
Couldwell notes the capability existed in the machine world but nobody applied it to medicine. Cross sector transfer is often faster than invention.
Planning does the work.
CT scans define the path and barriers within 1 mm of sensitive structures. The value sits in pre-operative planning software as much as the hardware.
Three questions for your next leadership meeting
- Which steps in our procedures take longest and add risk?
- What proven technology from other sectors could we adopt?
- How good is our pre-operative planning software?
The trends and technologies behind this story
From the 311 Starburst, the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit’s map of the technologies and trends shaping the next 50 years.
Analysis by the 311 Strategic Intelligence Unit, from Matthew Griffin’s article and 311 data. First published on Fanatical Futurist.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
Robots integrated with AI and Machine Vision are becoming increasingly capable surgeons and one day they'll save thousands of lives.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, President and Futurist, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 17-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder, President and Futurist of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity programme, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
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Choose one to get started on robotics and the future of your organisation.
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 21 May 2017. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2017). Meet the robot that’s fifty times faster than a brain surgeon. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/meet-the-robot-thats-fifty-times-faster-than-a-brain-surgeon/
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