Musician Who Lost His Arm Plays Piano Again with AI Prosthesis

A Star Wars-inspired limb provides control of each finger. A galaxy far, far away is a little closer with the invention of a robotic arm inspired by Luke Skywalker’s bionic hand. And while this arm may not wield a lightsaber, it has a greater power for jazz musician Jason Barnes — it lets him play the piano for the first time in five years. Barnes, who lost much of his right arm in a work accident, is back at the keys with an AI prosthesis created by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Unlike most prosthetics, it gives the 28-year-old the ability to control each finger individually. With it, Barnes can play Beethoven. He also plays the “Star Wars” theme song. (You can watch him the in the video below.) “It’s completely mind-blowing,” Barnes said. “If it can play piano, it can do almost anything.”