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Elon Musk’s Neuralink gets approval to put computer chip in human brains
While similar companies focus on human function restoration, Musk wants to enhance it through AI.
“We are excited to share that we have received the FDA’s approval to launch our first-in-human clinical study” Neuralink announced on Twitter, just over a year after the FDA declined approval in March 2022. Elon Musk retweeted the post while congratulating his team. The company said the approval was the result of the team working in “close collaboration with the FDA,” indicating that the original safety concerns about the lithium batteries and small wires potentially moving to other parts of the brain along with the ability to safely remove the device have all been resolved.
What is Neuralink?
Founded in 2016, Neuralink is a privately held brain-computer interface company based in Fremont, California with a campus under construction in Austin, Texas. Backed by Musk, the company has over 400 employees and has raised at least $363 million according to data-provider PitchBook.
Scientists and engineers in the brain-computer interface field have been working for decades on developing electronic implants that would translate brain activity to computers. Most of these companies have worked on restoring function to people with paralysis. Globally brain-computer implants have successfully resulted in functions that were, previously, only in our Star Wars dreams: a paralyzed man with a robotic hand, a patient with ALS typing through thinking, and a tetraplegic patient slowly walking.
However, Elon Musk’s Neuralink says that they don’t want to stop at restoring human functions. “We want to surpass able-bodied human performance with our technology,” Neuralink tweeted in April.
The company designed a chip that would be robotically sewn onto the brain and be regularly upgraded, with Musk noting at an event in November 2022, that “I’m pretty sure you would not want the iPhone 1 stuck in your head if the iPhone 14 is available.”
Federal investigation for violating the Animal Welfare Act
Neuralink has denied a report of employee allegations that the company has killed about 1,500 animals since 2018 as Musk demands for faster results. In a statement, Neuralink said they have “never received a citation” from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Inspector General, and that they are committed to animal welfare.
The company noted that it is not yet open for clinical trials, but will announce more details soon.
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