By Patrick Jackson & Tom GerkenBBC News
Getty ImagesTech billionaire Elon Musk has stated that his Neuralink company has effectively placed one of its wireless brain chips in a human. In a post on X, previously known as Twitter, he mentioned that the procedure showed “promising” brain activity and the patient is recuperating well. The company’s objective is to link human brains to computers to address complex neurological conditions. Several competing companies have already implanted comparable devices. Professor Anne Vanhoestenberghe of King’s College London stated that the first human test for any company producing medical devices is a significant achievement. She pointed out that Neuralink has joined a small group of companies that have implanted their devices in humans. Nonetheless, she cautioned that long-term evaluation is essential for determining true success. The École Polytechnique Fédérale in Lausanne, Switzerland, has also made strides in the field by enabling a paralyzed individual to walk by simply thinking. Elon Musk’s claims have not been independently verified, and Neuralink has not provided any details about the alleged procedure. BBC News has sought comment from both Neuralink and the US’s medical regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Neuralink has faced criticism in the past, with reports of testing that resulted in the deaths of around 1,500 animals. The US Department of Agriculture indicated that it had not found any violations of animal research rules at the firm, but a separate investigation is ongoing. In May 2023, the FDA granted Neuralink permission to test the chip on humans, marking the beginning of a six-year study involving the surgical placement of 64 flexible threads onto a part of the brain that controls “movement intention”. Neuralink explains that these threads enable its experimental implant to record and transmit brain signals wirelessly to an app that decodes the individual’s intended movements. Professor Tara Spires-Jones, president of the British Neuroscience Association, mentioned the potential of these interfaces to aid people with neurological disorders in the future, but highlighted that they still require invasive neurosurgery and are in the experimental stage. In another post on X, Mr. Musk introduced Neuralink’s first product, named Telepathy, which enables control of devices through thought. He stated that initial users would be individuals who have lost the use of their limbs and envisaged the potential for faster communication than a professional typist or auctioneer for individuals like Stephen Hawking, who had motor neurone disease. Despite Elon Musk’s involvement, some of his rivals have extensive experience dating back two decades. Existing devices have shown promising results, with recent US scientific studies using implants to monitor brain activity to aid communication for individuals attempting to speak.
