Neuralink (Photo: Neuralink)
Elon Musk announced tonight (Thursday) that the company Neuralink (Neuralink), which develops computer-brain interface chips, will begin clinical trials on humans with the chips implanted in the brain in about six months.
The chips are designed to allow patients with physical disabilities to move and communicate.
In recent years, the Neuralink company has been involved in animal experiments and now, Musk says, the company has submitted most of the required documents to the FDA to begin human experiments.
The event was mostly a technical presentation of the device, which presented how the system was built, challenges the team faced, how the technology has improved so far, and what developments are expected to come.
Researchers at the company said they are developing treatments that could help improve or restore vision, or restore movement in people with paralysis.
On the technological side, the company has ambitions to make sure that the device itself can be easily upgraded.
"We want to be very careful and make sure it works well before putting a component into humans," Musk said, adding: "As wonderful as it sounds, we're sure it's possible to restore full body function to people whose spinal cords have been damaged."
Musk.
The company will begin clinical trials on humans with chips implanted in the brain in about six months (Photo: GettyImages, Win McNamee)
Neuralink's technology is based on tiny components designed for implantation inside the brain.
These will be able to connect the thoughts and feelings of users to the digital world.
Last year, the chip in which Musk invested the best of his money was successfully implanted in a pig.
At the demo event, Musk showed how the chip could read the pig's brain activity.
Another documentary showed a monkey playing the computer game Mind Pong.
Although he was skilled in using a joystick, it was not connected, and it seems that he controlled the moves only through thinking alone.
technology
news
Tags
Elon Musk
chip