Automated magnetic stimulation localizes human motor cortex targets
Published in Brain/Neurology, Journals, Noninvasive, Tools.
Published October 28, 2026.
An October 27 paper in Communications Biology describes an automated approach to locating motor-function targets in the human cortex. Granö and colleagues combine electronically steered multi-locus transcranial magnetic stimulation with Bayesian optimization.
The method uses responses to stimulation to guide subsequent measurements, creating a closed loop that searches for an effective target location and orientation. In the reported motor-mapping evaluation, it localized individual response peaks in approximately four minutes, with average deviations of 2.4 millimeters and five degrees from the optimum.
The approach could make repeated targeting less dependent on manual adjustments and provide a more standardized research workflow. Its combination of adaptive search and noninvasive stimulation is relevant to the development of individualized brain-mapping tools.
The demonstrated result concerns motor target localization, not a complete map of brain functions or an established treatment benefit. Extending the method to speech, connectivity or other cortical functions requires separate validation. The reported accuracy should also be interpreted within the experimental conditions rather than assumed to apply across clinical populations.
Source: Granö et al., Communications Biology, October 27, 2026. DOI: 10.1038/s42003-026-11142-7.