Elon Musk, CEO of X (previously known as Twitter), claims his business, Neuralink, has successfully implanted one of its wireless brain chips in a human for the first time ever.
Musk announced in a post on X that the guy who received the implant is healing well.
“Initial results show promising neuron spike detection,” he stated in a blog post.
Spikes are the activity of neurons, which are cells that employ electrical and chemical impulses to transmit information across the brain and to the body.
In another post on X, Musk stated that Neuralink’s initial product would be called Telepathy.
He claimed that Telepathy would allow him to “control your phone or computer, and almost any device, just by thinking.”
“Initial users will be those who have lost the use of their limbs,” he went on to say.
Referring to the late British scientist who suffered from motor neurone illness, he remarked, “Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a speed typist or auctioneer.” That’s the goal.”
In May, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the company’s first trial research to test its implant on humans.
According to Neuralink, “The PRIME Study,” which stands for “Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface,” is a ground-breaking investigational medical device trial for a completely implantable, wireless brain-computer interface (BCI).
It stated that the study’s goal is to examine the safety of its implant and surgical robot, as well as the first capability of allowing patients with paralysis to control external devices with their thoughts.
“During the study, the R1 Robot will be used to surgically place the N1 Implant’s ultra-fine and flexible threads in a region of the brain that controls movement intention,” according to a statement issued by the business in 2023.
“Once in place, the N1 Implant is cosmetically unnoticeable and is designed to record and wirelessly transmit brain impulses to an app that decodes movement intention.
“The first goal of our BCI is to enable users to control a computer cursor or keyboard solely via their thoughts.
“The PRIME Study is being carried out under an experimental device exemption (IDE) granted by the FDA in May 2023, and it represents a crucial step in our mission to develop a generic brain interface to restore autonomy to persons with unmet medical requirements.
“Those who have quadriplegia due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) may qualify.”