Within days of the MaleCNS v1.0 fruit-fly nervous-system connectome becoming publicly available, an experiment appeared that used its simulated neural activity to control DOOM. Visual input from the game is converted into neural stimulation, while selected responses are mapped back to movement and firing controls.

Software engineer Alex Wormuth is also using damage in the game as a reinforcement signal to test whether the system can learn behaviors that help it survive. It has not mastered the game, but the speed from serious neuroscience dataset to “make it run DOOM” is remarkable.