Whoever lasts it (mother) wins it. Neuralink, Elon Musk's startup born in the 2019, just received FDA approval for the first human tests of its brain implants that create a brain-computer interface.
Many doubts and problems. solved?
As you may recall, back in 2022 Neuralink made its first application to authorize human testing to the FDA, but it was rejected due to safety concerns. Which? Well, first and foremost the lithium battery, the potential mobility in the brain of the microscopic wires that are part of the implant, and the uncertainty of how (and especially IF), Neuralink would be able to remove the implant without damaging the brain tissue .
Apparently now the company managed to solve these problems. She hasn't yet started recruiting volunteers for her human trials, but now the "regulatory doors" for the experiments are wide open.
“The small object that will revolutionize our lives”
The N1 plant of Neuralink, slightly larger than a 0.50€ coin, is designed to be placed under the skin, replacing a part of the recipient's skull. Thanks to 64 flexible microprobes inserted into precise points of the brain tissue, it allows a two-way communication between the brain and a computer chip through 1,024 channels.
The implant can then communicate wirelessly with external devices, allowing patients to interact with smartphones, computers and the like using only their minds. Requires some training, but (as demonstrated by monkeys with this brain chip) works quite well. The N1 also charges wirelessly, so no one will need to stick their head to an outlet at night.
Small obvious but necessary disclaimer: apart from my lightening, this is a frontier technology with all its load of problems, ethical doubts and difficulties which we also talk about on this site.
Human trials begin. And now?
The plan is to use these implants first in patients with quadriplegia, to give them the ability to operate computers and control devices.
Subsequently, and here comes the "good part" (so to speak), Musk wants to make these brain-computer interfaces a consumer product for anyone. The tycoon is certain that they will open up much faster communication between humans and computers than the keyboard and mouse allow. And sometimes this guy predicted developments in technology quite well.
The future is getting closer and closer
In a purely speculative sense, this technology could open up much more than just a mind-controlled typing interface.
In the coming decades, future versions of these plants could:
- Control additional bionic limbs, vehicles or robotic avatars, complete with sensory feedback.
- Allowing images or audio to be received directly into your visual or auditory systems without the need for speakers or displays (the world seems like that could do without it regardless).
- Giving the ability to tune into additional eyes and ears virtually anywhere on the planet.
- Allow you to “think” messages and send them directly to someone else's neural implant through some sort of electronic telepathy.
- Record brain activity during dreams, and allow them to be reviewed during waking hours.
- undergo a brain hacker attack. It's a possibility that accounts for all the creepy ones.
In summary: a leap forward from human tests, and into the unknown.
Things could certainly get very wacky by expanding brain-computer communication, and that seems to be exactly the purpose of these human tests.
Tests that will pass for the development of the core of Neuralink technology: R1, a robot surgeon (I call it more of a “stapling” machine) that takes care of the brain implant procedure. A procedure that would be incredibly difficult by hand. Imagine taking a hair and trying to stick it into a jelly covered in cling film. And to do it at a precise depth, in a precise position, 64 times in a reasonable time.
These are enormous technological innovations, which go far beyond the question of brain implants, and could mark progress in many fields, from diagnostics to surgery.
What can I say: when it comes, I'll keep my fingers crossed for the volunteers who will undergo the first tests on humans. It really takes a lot of courage.
