The “Norway Prototype”: CIA Investigates Scientist’s Homemade Havana Device

A major investigation by The Washington Post on Saturday, February 14, 2026, revealed that the CIA and the Department of War recently reviewed a “secret” pulsed-energy device in Norway that successfully replicated the symptoms of Havana Syndrome. Unlike previous reports of captured foreign weaponry, this device was built by a skeptical Norwegian government researcher who ended up proving the very theory he sought to debunk.
The Self-Experiment
The researcher, whose identity remains protected, reportedly constructed a microwave-emitting machine to test whether directed energy could truly cause the “Anomalous Health Incidents” (AHIs) reported by over 1,500 U.S. officials. In a high-stakes self-experiment, the scientist exposed himself to the device’s pulses.
The results were immediate and harrowing: the researcher developed the exact neurological symptoms described by victims in Havana, including intense head pressure, vertigo, and cognitive “fog.” Norway subsequently informed the CIA, prompting at least two high-level visits by Pentagon and White House officials to inspect the hardware and review the data.
The “Backpack” Device from late 2024
The Norway revelation follows news from January 2026 that the U.S. government spent “eight figures” (upwards of $10 million) to clandestinely acquire a separate, portable device in the waning days of 2024. Sources described this earlier acquisition as:
* Portable: Small enough to fit inside a backpack.
* Hybrid Origin: Containing components of Russian origin but not entirely Russian-made.
* Technological Basis: Utilizing pulsed radio-frequency (RF) energy, which the National Academies of Sciences has called the “most plausible” cause of the syndrome.
Vindication for Victims?
For years, seven U.S. intelligence agencies maintained it was “very unlikely” a foreign adversary was responsible, often citing a lack of a “smoking gun” weapon. However, the Norway experiment provides what officials call “proof of concept”—tangible evidence that such a device can be built with relatively accessible technology and can indeed cause career-ending neurological damage.
While the Norway device was a laboratory experiment and not a weapon captured on a battlefield, its existence has reignited the debate within the Trump administration. The Pentagon is reportedly using the findings to refine its “active defense” sensors for U.S. embassies, while some officials argue the ease with which the Norwegian researcher built the device suggests the technology has already “proliferated” to multiple hostile actors.
The Government Stance
The CIA has declined to comment on the Washington Post report, but the Department of War has significantly increased funding for “directed energy counter-measures” in the 2026 budget. The “Norway Prototype” serves as a sobering reminder that the invisible waves once dismissed as “mass psychogenic illness” are very much a reality of modern irregular warfare.