Peter Gamma (Physiologist & Director) Meditation Research Institute Switzerland (MRIS)

Is OpenBCI made in China risky (part II) – Yes

Last Updated on February 26, 2024 by pg@petergamma.org

Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org made very negative experiences with products which are based on the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip in recent years. It felt like if there was as marketing software which craws the whole internet about people who are interested in EEG products based on the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip. Offers where made to us, such as many products: OpenBCI made in China, products from www.openbci.com, HackEEG and PiEEG.

Some of them have been offered, then pulled from the market again such as PiEEG. OpenBCI made in China was offered on Aliexpress and from one day to the other it was pulled from Aliexpress again.

It feels like a big brother is controlling every person who is interested or uses EEG products based on the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip and registers every mouse click of this person in his marketing software.

So is OpenBCI made in China risky (part II)? All of this is scary and it feels always like a big brother who is watching us what we do with products we buy on eBay and Aliexpress which contain the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip.

So if Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org would open up an OpenBCI shop with Biosensing for Everyone at Would offer a shop at the best place in Zurich next to the Franz Carl Weber shop at the Bahnhofplatz 10 in 8001 Zürich, which which offers all products from www.openbci.com for 50 % of the price there, as well as Neurosity Crown and OpenBCI Galea, Biosemi Amplifiers for 50 %, and all of this with free world-wide shipping and next day delivery.

This is risky. Since we suppose Texas Instruments would not offer OpenBCI on eBay and Aliexpress anymore, but would open an OpenBCI shop with Biosensing for Everyone in Zurich next to the Franz Carl Weber shop at the Bahnhofplatz 8 in 8001 Zürich, with all the products we offer for the same costs and kill our business by not offering OpenBCI anymore on eBay and Aliexpress.

Our business at the Bahnhofplatz 10 is not realistic, since rents there are very high. But still it is a scenario which is possible in theory. And this scenario makes building our own device from OpenBCI modules on eBay and Aliexpress which contain the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip a bad choice.

An alternative would be to negotiate with the developers of the products which contain the Texas Instruments ADS1299 EEG chip for a contract. But we suppose they would offers us a contract for a product which costs 1000 USD for 8 channels, which is the same as OpenBCI Cyton, or for even higher costs.

But all of this is not interesting for Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org, to make such a contract with a developer for a product which is based on a 10 year old ADS1299 EEG chip, and is sold to us for a high price.

And all of this make EEG device built on a different architecture more interesting for Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org, as for instance this one:

An architecture based on TGAM modules which have stable prices and availability. Products on which other developers have built their EEG devices as well. Where no such phenomena are known as we describe here.