The device that reconstructs ancestral memories in Assassin's Creed is called the Animus.
In the series, the Animus is a machine that lets a user access genetic memories inherited from ancestors. Desmond Miles first uses it under the direction of Abstergo Industries, allowing players to experience the lives of figures such as Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad and Ezio Auditore.
The technology provides the franchise's connection between historical adventures and modern-day science-fiction. Although the games present historical sequences as memory reconstructions, the Animus also supports synchronization, interface prompts, and communication with people outside the simulation.
A frequent mix-up is the Helix, another Abstergo-related system featured in later stories. Eagle Vision is an Assassin ability or perception mode, not a machine, while an Apple of Eden is a powerful Isu artifact. The Animus is specifically the memory-access device.