Costa Rica scientists placed an AI touchscreen in a wild forest; 16 capuchin monkeys used it for banana rewards

Scientists created CapuchinAI, an AI system using facial recognition and touchscreen testing to automate cognitive studies of wild capuchin monkeys.

In a Costa Rica forest reserve, 16 capuchin monkeys used the AI touchscreen for banana rewards and some learned to kiss the screen.

CapuchinAI identifies individual capuchins with 97% accuracy and delivers food rewards for correct touchscreen tasks.

The system was developed by researchers at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology and field-tested in the Taboga Forest Reserve.

The study, published in The American Journal of Primatology, provides a scalable way to study primate cognition in the wild.