Clarity, a neurotechnology company developing non-invasive treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, today announced the publication of its first peer-reviewed scientific paper in Scientific Reports (a Nature Portfolio journal).

The clinical study described in the paper evaluated Clarity’s proprietary VR-based 40 Hz gamma sensory stimulation platform in healthy older adults, marking the first time this approach has been tested in this population within a controlled trial.

Full article: Scientific Reports — Feasibility of 40 Hz light and sound stimulation delivered via VR in healthy older adults

Study design

Sixteen cognitively healthy elders participated in a one-day pilot study to test the feasibility of delivering gamma sensory stimulation through VR technology. The study followed a within-subject design whereby EEG responses to 40Hz and sham audiovisual stimulation were compared.

Study highlights:

• Neural entrainment at 40 Hz: VR‑delivered gamma sensory stimulation produced robust increases in gamma power in sensory cortices during unimodal auditory and visual conditions, and significant increases in both gamma power and inter‑trial phase coherence (ITPC) under multimodal (audiovisual) stimulation — observed in both passive viewing and a cognitively loaded context.

• Safety & tolerability: No serious adverse events were reported; notably, no participants experienced motion sickness. Most participants rated the headset comfortable and the experience enjoyable. 93.8% rated the VR environment as not overwhelming.

• Completion & feasibility: All 16 participants completed the session and end‑of‑session safety/tolerability questionnaires, supporting feasibility of precise 40 Hz stimulation inside an immersive VR experience.

• Implication: The results validate VR as a scalable delivery modality for engaging, cognitively relevant gamma stimulation and motivate extension to patient populations in upcoming studies.

Building toward patient impact

This publication represents the first step in translating more than a decade of gamma rhythm research into a scalable therapeutic platform. It supports Clarity’s broader mission to develop its next-generation headset designed to deliver brain stimulation alongside real-time monitoring of brain activity and other physiological signals.