The Food and Drug Administration has given the billionaire’s company the green light to start experimenting with its products on humans: Animal tests have shown that the gaze is enough to type words on a screen or even play video games. A concrete help especially for people suffering from paralysis or neurological disorders, but the company also wants to make these systems safe for those who decide to equip their brains with the power of a computer
“It’s a really important step.” Neuralink, Elon Musk’s startup, thus defines the green light that the Food and Drug Administration (Fda) has received to test its brain implants on humans. “In this way, our technology could one day help many people. Recruitment for clinical trials is not yet possible,” the start-up said on Twitter.
History
Neuralink designs connected devices that can be implanted in the brain to allow computers to communicate directly through thoughts. A tool especially for people who are paralyzed or suffer from neurological disorders but the company wants to make these implants safe and reliable enough to be a choice for those who decide to equip their brains with computer power obviously through a costly surgery of a few thousand dollars. As Elon Musk stated in 2020, these chips should enable humanity to achieve a “symbiosis with AI”. “We are now confident that Neuralink’s device is ready for humans, so the timing depends on the FDA approval process,” he said on Twitter in late November.
possible applications
The billionaire is not new to risky predictions, as evidenced by Tesla’s electric car range. In July 2019, it estimated that Neuralink could conduct its first human tests in 2020. So far, only coin-sized prototypes have been implanted in animal skulls, with encouraging results. In fact, several monkeys are thus able to “play” video games or “type” words on a screen simply by following the movement of the cursor with their eyes. Other companies are working to control computers with thoughts, such as Synchron, which announced in July 2022 that it had implanted the first brain-machine interface in the United States.
Source: TG 24 Sky