Does Consciousness require a cerebral cortex?

In this paper, we reconsider to what extent, in the context of Neuroscience and Computer Science of the XXIst century, consciousness would remain or not a human specificity. Equivalent functional faculties can be produced by systems differing not only by the material of which they are constructed, but also by the architecture that combines their components. Consequently, is the advent of a consciousness other than ours so inconceivable? What kind of consciousness entities without a cerebral cortex could have?