Taobao to apply neurotech to e-commerce

China’s largest e-commerce platform Taobao recently issued a hi-tech product, “Neurabuy,” in its 5th Taobao Maker Festival.

The product aims to apply neurotechnology in e-commerce and other fields of daily life, challenging the American tech giant Elon Musk and his brain-machine interface technology. 

Known as the "Oscar" of Chinese youth creativity, the Taobao Maker Festival has entered its fifth year. On August 3, it issued a report on the six trends of creativity in 2020, including the China-patented “Neurabuy” brain-computer interface technology.

In a promotional video for the new hi-tech product, relevant personnel announce that China’s innovation has surpassed Elon Musk’s prototype in certain areas, and is expected to be applied in scenarios such as online shopping in the next decade.

Taobao’s parent company Alibaba filed a patent application with the National Intellectual Property Administration on July 30, media reports said. 

“Neurabuy enables people to better communicate their needs with online platforms,” a research fellow explained, noting that the product can apply to multiple scenarios in the future.

“Using big data, it can realize targeted recommendations and talk with customers like a real person, or even a virtual friend.”

The new technology can also help people with cognitive disabilities, including elderly people suffering from Parkinson's disease, the research fellow said. 

The new technology, however, has raised heated controversy among netizens. While some are impressed to see fancy technologies from sci-fi movies coming true, others are concerned about personal privacy and the risk of data being collected for business purposes. 

“With the new brain-machine interface, Taobao could persuade me into buying anything. Even the slightest desire to buy would immediately turn into a bill to be paid,” one comment reads.