Synopsis
Neuralink has implanted its device in third human patient and plans more procedures in 2025. The device allows paralyzed individuals to control external devices with their thoughts. The company is conducting studies to evaluate the safety and efficacy of its brain implants. Neuralink aims to revolutionize neurotechnology.
Elon Musk announced that a third person has received an implant from his brain-computer interface company, Neuralink, marking another milestone in the company’s efforts to connect the nervous system to machines. Musk confirmed the news during an interview at a Las Vegas event streamed on his social media platform X.
“We’ve got… three humans with Neuralinks and all are working well,” Musk said during a wide-ranging interview at a Las Vegas event streamed on his social media platform X.
Since the first brain implant about a year ago, Musk said the company has upgraded the devices with more electrodes, higher bandwidth, and longer battery life.
Musk also said Neuralink hopes to implant the experimental devices in 20 to 30 more people this year.
Musk didn’t provide any details about the latest patient, but there are updates on the previous ones.
Who’s working on brain-computer interface technology?
More than 45 trials involving brain-computer interfaces are underway, according to a US database of studies. The efforts are aimed at helping treat brain disorders, overcoming brain injuries, and other uses.
Many research labs have already shown that humans can accurately control computer cursors using BCIs, said Rajesh Rao, co-director of the Center for Neurotechnology at the University of Washington in the US.
Rao said Neuralink may be unique in two ways: the surgery to implant the device is the first time a robot has been used to implant flexible electrode threads into a human brain to record neural activity and control devices.
Those threads may also record from more neurons than other interfaces.
Still, he said, the advantages of Neuralink’s approach have yet to be shown, and some competitors have eclipsed the company in other ways.
For example, Rao said companies such as Synchron, Blackrock Neurotech, and Onward Medical are already conducting BCI trials on people “using either less invasive methods or more versatile approaches” that combine neural recording with stimulation.
