A monkey at a US laboratory has learned to control a large robotic arm with the power of mind control.
Sensors hooked up to the primate's brain allow him to move the arm in different directions and even turn a handle.
The device is so advanced it lets the monkey quickly change direction if he misses his target, according to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh.
"It's pretty amazing because monkeys aren't used to moving tools," neurobiologist Andy Schwartz told Sky News.
"Imagine you're moving your arm to get that piece of food … conveying that to a monkey is pretty difficult, yet the monkey learns it fairly rapidly.
"As the days go by, you see the monkeys start using it as if it is part of their own body."
The device works by transferring electrical impulses from the monkey's motor cortex to a computer, which then tells the arm where and how fast to move.
The process does not appear to cause the monkey any discomfort.
The research team hopes the technology may be able to help paralysed human patients within the year.
"What we're trying to do is go to a very dextrous hand, where the functionality is very similar to the human hand," Dr Schwarz said.
"If we could help stroke patients there would be a huge market for this kind of device."
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