TCS | The company building a ‘living computer’ with human cells

Loading player...
The invention of the silicon transistor was fundamental to the success of the digital age, driving the core of the modern-day digital economy.
The rise of generative AI has put hardware at the epicentre of the next wave of economic growth, with chip makers such as Nvidia and AMD reaching record valuations as demand for advanced chips far outstrips supply.
But as AI data centres expand, so, too, does their consumption of resources, with their demand for water and electricity rising exponentially.
FinalSpark is a Swiss biocomputing company exploring more efficient ways of computing – and it’s turned to human neurons as a potential solution.
In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Fred Jordan, co-founder and co-CEO of FinalSpark, gives insight into “wetware” (in effect, living hardware) and what it means for the future of computing.
Jordan delves into:
• What inspired him turn to living neurons as a means of processing;
• Parallels between his training as a signal processing engineer and his work with living neurons;
• Why FinalSpark uses human neurons and not any other like those from a cat on an octopus;
• How skin cells are used to “create” the neurons;
• How the neurons are fed, stored and kept alive;
• How long the neurons live for and the sort of computations FinalSpark has made them perform; and
• His views on the future of computing.
Don’t miss this intriguing discussion!
23 Oct 2025 English South Africa Technology · Business

Other recent episodes

TCS+ | ‘The ISP for ISPs’: Vox’s shift to wholesale aggregator

Vox, a well-established retail internet service provider is expanding its services to the wholesale market through aggregation. In this episode of TechCentral’s podcast series TCS+, Andre Eksteen, senior product manager for fibre to the business at Vox, discusses the rationale behind this strategy and the services Vox is offering as…
20 Apr 16 min

TCS | Werner Lindemann on how AI is rewriting the infosec rulebook

The pace at which artificial intelligence is reshaping the threat landscape is outstripping the ability of most organisations to defend themselves, with shadow AI, synthetic identity attacks and a looming quantum computing disruption all converging at once. That’s the view of DataGroupIT CEO Werner Lindemann, who joined Duncan McLeod on…
15 Apr 38 min

TCS | Donovan Marsh on AI and the future of filmmaking

Award-winning South African film director Donovan Marsh has pivoted to artificial intelligence filmmaking and believes generative AI tools could fundamentally reshape how movies are made – and who gets to make them. Marsh, whose 30-year career includes directing the Hollywood submarine thriller Hunter Killer starring Gerard Butler and Gary Oldman,…
7 Apr 52 min

TCS+ | Vodacom Business moves to crack the SME tech gap

Everyone agrees that small and medium enterprises are the backbone of the South African economy. But the reality on the ground tells a different story – too many small businesses are still running on spreadsheets and WhatsApp, locked out of the tools that could help them compete. In this episode…
5 Apr 34 min

TCS | MTN’s Divyesh Joshi on the strategy behind Pi

MTN South Africa has launched Pi, a digital-only mobile operator that runs on MTN’s network but operates as a standalone brand, offering contract-free mobile and home 5G connectivity through a single app, with no call centres, no credit checks and no lock-in. In this episode of the TechCentral Show, TechCentral…
1 Apr 21 min