For all its intelligence – and it can be extremely intelligent – giving instructions to AI can sometimes feel like talking to a toddler. You provide a detailed prompt explaining exactly what you want, and the AI does something that may be related to it, but definitely not what you meant. Scientists have now developed a system that can detect that unspoken “That's not what I meant” response directly from your brainwaves, potentially allowing an AI to realize it has misunderstood you and attempt to correct itself in real time.