Next year’s Christmas presents could be mind-controlled

From radio-controlled cars to helicopters and toy robots, Christopher James, director of Warwick Engineering in Biomedicine at the School of Engineering, said the technology works “by connecting thoughts to computerised systems”.

Instead of a hand-held controller, a headset is used to create a brain-computer interface, which creates a communication link between the human brain and the computerised device, the engineering team said.

Commenting on the technology’s potential, James said: "Whilst brain-computer interfaces already exist - there are already a few gaming headsets on the market - their functionality has been quite limited.

“New research is making the headsets now read cleaner and stronger signals than ever before - this means stronger links to the toy, game or action thus making it a very immersive experience.”