IGX

The dream of achieving biological immortality may have taken a big step forward. A 31-year-old Russian billionaire, Dmitry Itskov, claims that his research team will be able to transplant a human brain into an artificial body by 2020, And by 2045 he is sure that he will be able to create hologram avatars with the same capabilities as the humans in the James Cameron film.

In an open letter to the members of Forbes World’s Billionaires List, Mr Itskov makes some bold predictions for his 2045 Initiative: “substance-independent minds will receive new bodies with capacities far exceeding those of ordinary humans. A new era for humanity will arrive! … humanity, for the first time in its history, will make a fully managed evolutionary transition and eventually become a new species.”

The letter suggests that his fellow billionaires might like to participate in the project -- free of charge -- to help it advance more rapidly. “You have the power to support and create a new industry of immortality to make revolutionary change that will forever reverberate through the pages of history.”

Mr Itskov has some high-profile supporters. Actor Steven Seagal has written an open letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin calling upon him to support the project.

The 2045 initiative has received the blessing and support from the Dalai Lama, as it prepares to announce the second Global Future 2045 Congress, being held in New York, June, 2013.

Dmitry Itskov, founder of 2045, met His Holiness Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, in his residence in Dharamsala, a small mountain town in northern India.

They discussed the three major steps of 2045 Avatar Project. First, the creation of a human-like robot dubbed “Avatar A,” and a state-of-the-art brain-computer interface system to link the mind with it. Next, it be created a life support system for the human brain, which connects to the “Avatar A,” turning into “Avatar B.” The third step, named “Avatar C”, is developing an artificial brain in which to transfer one’s individual consciousness with the goal of achieving cybernetic immortality.

Creating the “Avatar C” through developing an artificial brain and understanding the nature of human consciousness, says the Dalai Lama, could be attainable, and would be a great benefit to future development of science.