Neuroscientist bidding to build the brain’s operating manual

For three decades Professor Ian Robertson has been researching the complex functions of the human brain with the aim of understanding not just how to capture attention but how to hold and sustain it to maximise learning outcomes. 

The neuroscientist is now applying his research to Abilta, a company co-founded with clinical psychologist Dr Fiona O’Doherty which aims to develop an interactive AI-driven platform capable of assessing the mental state of individuals and, for those in need, suggesting interventions to help them regain a feeling of control. 

Ablita is supported by The Learnovate Centre, a key partner in the development of Abilta’s business proposal and software. The relationship continues to pay dividends for Abilita after the company received funding from Enterprise Ireland to conduct a feasibility study on its AI platform.

“We live in a world in which companies that control attention make the most money. The attention economy has led to increasing rates of anxiety in young people, a decline in academic achievement and, with the rise of AI, an overwhelming feeling for many that events are moving beyond their control,” says Prof. Robertson.

“The brain is the most complex entity in the known universe, and we don’t have an operating manual for it. Our job is to build that operating manual, so that we can avoid the neurological pitfalls associated with new technologies and social media platforms, to keep our minds on what we’re doing. After all, attention determines our emotions, and our emotions greatly influence our performance at work.”

After earning his doctorate in clinical psychology, Prof. Robertson worked in clinical settings in Edinburgh in the 1980s before moving to Cambridge to join the UK Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. It was there that he conducted research on people with brain injuries to develop the science underpinning behavioural change.  

In 1999, he moved to Ireland to set up the Institute of Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin, the first organisation of its kind on the island of Ireland. Later, he would partner with the University of California to set up the Global Brain Health Institute, also at TCD. He stepped away from his role as co-director of the institute earlier this year. 

“I became interested in this area while working with patients who had lost the ability to concentrate after suffering stroke or some other kind of traumatic brain injury,” he says.

“In particular, I was interested in the brain’s arousal systems, the chemical messengers involved in keeping us alert. Noradrenaline is critical for learning and attention and is produced in one tiny area of the brain called the locus coeruleus, which is key to the fight or flight reflex. If we’re stressed or anxious, noradrenaline is pumped into the brain. If we’re bored or jaded or depressed, there’s too little. A sweet spot in the middle is where we find optimal performance.” 

He continues: “When we feel really focused and alert it’s because all the regions of the brain are resonating together. Many things can interfere with that but one thing we found through our research is that the locus coeruleus is highly sensitive to the amount of carbon dioxide in your blood. So, the way you breathe changes the way that part of your brain fires and, in turn, how much noradrenaline is produced. Effectively, we found a scientific basis for what yoga teachers have been saying for years: you can control your mental and emotional state with your breath.”

Prof. Robertson believes that this research can help to counter some of the more troubling trends brought about by the growth of AI technology and social media. 

“Anxiety is increasing at the same time as academic performance is trending down. Over the whole of the 20th century, average intelligence in the developed world increased by about 40% but, since 2010, there’s been a decline in the performance of teens in OECD countries. Meanwhile, since 2012, when social media started controlling people’s attention, there’s been a dizzying increase in anxiety problems,” he says. 

“With Abilta, we want to give organisations and individuals the capacity to assess how well they’re operating their brains, how well the software is running, areas of potential improvement to allow the computer in their head to run more smoothly. People will engage with an AI and self-report their issues. The AI will then respond with interventions, some of them related to breathing, which will help restore a feeling of stability and control.”

Prof. Robertson adds: “The attention economy is making companies and individuals very wealthy. My research is a response to that and asserts that we have to train people to take back control of their own attention, for their own wellbeing, and for the people they work for.”