by Elon Musk has said that his brain-computer interface company, Neuralink, has implanted its first device in humans.
Eventually, Mr. Musk hopes the system can be used to merge humans with computers, allowing them to interact with artificial intelligence simply by thinking, for example.
But it appears that it is currently being used on people with quadriplegia, to allow them to interact with devices simply by thinking.
Mr Musk says he has now become the first person in history to get one of Neuralink’s brain chips in his head. Although he has shared little about that trial, he has discussed his big plans for the company in the past.
What is the brain chip?
On Neuralink’s website, it describes the new study as “a cutting-edge investigational medical device trial of our fully implantable, wireless brain-computer interface”, which aims to “evaluate the safety, and functionality of our implantable and surgical robots consider the front of the robot. our BCI to enable people with quadriplegics to control external devices with their thoughts”.
In the study, people will receive “a small, cosmetically invisible implant in a part of the brain that plans movements”. It is built to interpret the activity in their brain, so they can use a computer or smartphone but “plan to move”.
That system is implanted in the head using a robot specifically built to do that task, Neuralink has said in the past. That sounds like a sewing machine that places probes – made up of electrodes attached to wires – to the brain.
Mr Musk made similar claims on Twitter after announcing the first implant. The system, he said, is called “telepathy”.
“It enables you to control your phone or computer, and almost any device through them, just by thinking,” he previously wrote on X, Twitter. “The front users are those people who have lost the use of their limbs.
“Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a speed typist or an auctioneer. That’s the goal.”
Is the first trial a success?
It is not clear yet. Elon Musk has said little about it – although it has been suggested that he seems to be doing well.
He said the study was the first to be “improving well” and “initial neuron spike detection results show promise”.
But the experts said that we may know whether the system works or not.
“I expect that Neuralink will want to give the participant time to recover before they start training their system with the participant,” said Anne Vanhoestenberghe, professor of active implantable medical devices at King’s College London.
“We know that Elon Musk is very good at generating publicity for his company, so maybe we can expect announcements as soon as they start testing, although in my mind that should be considered a real success in the long term, depending on how stable the interface is over time. , and how much it benefits the participant.””
Where did Neuralink come from?
Neuralink was founded in 2016, and Mr. Musk announced it a year later. A Wall Street Journal the report then suggested that the company was working to integrate humans with machines and especially AI – but that the first uses would be more focused, looking at conditions like epilepsy and depression.
Neuralink is one of Mr. Musk’s smaller projects for the future, and ChatGPT creators OpenAI were also among them. It is one of a number of companies working on the cutting edge of brain-computer interfaces, or BCIs, which aim to allow humans to communicate directly with machines.
In the years since its founding, Neuralink has faced some backlash, with reports of unhappy staff and questions about the company’s animal testing. But he has also announced some progress – including work on monkeys.
What is Elon Musk trying to do with Neuralink?
Mr. Musk has big plans for the company: he talked about it in terms of science fiction, and speculated about the possibility of merging human thought with AI. For now, however, the company seems to be focusing on more modest goals, such as helping people with specific neurological conditions.
The CEO of SpaceX and Twitter often tends to run his companies this way. SpaceX, for example, is part of a wider plan to allow humanity to live on different planets – but for now it is focusing on the more concrete task of putting rockets into space.
What has happened so far?
Neuralink appears to have been successful in animal testing. He showed the system being used to allow a monkey to play pong, for example – a feat that had already been achieved by other researchers but nevertheless indicates that Neuralink is making progress.
Away from Neuralink, scientists have made significant progress in connecting people’s brains to devices. But the experts warn that we are still some time from those that are readily available or common.
“In recent research trials (not related to Neuralink), scientists have been able to implant brain-spinal interfaces that help people with paralysis walk and other work shows promising results in computers interpreting brain waves and brain scans to allow for people who cannot walk. talk to communicate,” said Tara Spiers-Jones, president of the British Neurological Association.
“However, most of these interfaces require invasive neurosurgery and are still in experimental stages so it will likely be many years before they are widely available.”
