The development has already been tested in rodents.
Neuralink is a neurotechnological startup of entrepreneur Elon Musk, the foundation of which first became known in 2017. The company's goal is the development and production of devices that help communicate and transfer information between a computer and a person.
“It may sound rather strange, but in the end we will achieve symbiosis with artificial intelligence. It won't be a mandatory feature, but you can choose it if you want,”Musk said at a press conference in San Francisco on Tuesday evening. The broadcast was conducted on the company's YouTube channel.
At the presentation, the startup presented a technology that allows you to read information from the brain. It is based on six strands, each four to six micrometers thick, with dozens of electrodes. A special device, similar to a sewing machine and using high-quality optics, is able to automatically implant threads in one minute, without affecting the blood vessels.
A machine that survives threads.
A chip that sends data to a computer.
According to representatives of Neuralink, about 20 operations on rodents have already been performed and in 87 percent of cases the robot has successfully implanted thread-implants into their brain.
In a recent experiment in a laboratory in San Francisco, a thread implanted in a rodent's brain was connected to a USB and was able to transmit information from its brain to a computer. At the same time, the software - a chip - recorded and analyzed the brain activity of the experimental animal, measuring the strength of the brain waves. The amount of data received ten times exceeded the amount of information that modern sensors can collect, the developers emphasized.
Promotional video:
The startup is rumored to be testing its technology on primates, and yesterday Elon Musk confirmed this information. He also noted that the first tests were successful.
Mouse with a chip.
With regard to the use of technology in humans, then, according to the idea of the developers, a device with a battery that will transmit data to a computer wirelessly is planned to be placed behind the ear. First, four holes with a diameter of eight millimeters will be drilled in the skull, then threads will be implanted in different parts of the brain. According to experts, the first operations will be carried out under general anesthesia, and later a laser can be used to install the chip. The device itself can be controlled using a smartphone.
The goal of the development is to give paralyzed people the ability to literally type a text message or e-mail at a speed of 40 words per minute, move the cursor around the screen and thereby browse the web.
The company also said that Neuralink is going to send a request to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval to conduct clinical trials of the new technology in humans. The tests may begin as early as next year, but, of course, it is still far from commercial use.
Elon Musk at a press conference in San Francisco.
As experts insist, implanting electrical wires and other devices into the human brain requires high precision and accuracy, since the organ reacts negatively to foreign elements, forming scar tissue around the wires and thereby spoiling them. So Neuralink has yet to prove the safety and usefulness of its design.
