Visualizations of Karl’s recollection of seeing a familiar woman's eyes in his cat's face and of his cat appearing within a human face. AI-generated images co-created by Brad Duchaine and Karl. The image on the left was generated using ChatGPT 5.5 (Open AI) based on Karl's verbal descriptions. The image on the right was generated using Chat GPT 5.5 from a sketch that Karl drew. Both images were modified in response to Karl’s feedback, with some changes made directly by Karl using Kimi K3 (Moonshot AI) until they matched his visual experiences. Image:Duchaine et al. ‘Cortex,’ 2026 / Dartmouth College

A 28-year-old man got a little bit more than he bargained for after a life-saving brain surgery. Karl (last name withheld for privacy) sees features of his grey tabby cat , Luna, on the human faces he encounters throughout the day. He’ll see Luna’s almond-shaped eye sockets, enlarged pupils, or stripes on humans, if her face is the first one he sees in the morning.…