Musk posted on the X platform stating that the first human patient had received an implant from his brain computer interface company Neuralink yesterday and is currently recovering well. The preliminary results show that neuron spike detection is very promising.
It should be noted that Neuralink's brain computer interface device is an invasive brain implant that controls external devices through neural signals, helping severely paralyzed patients recover their ability to communicate with the outside world.
Musk previously stated that Neuralink's short-term goal is to help paralyzed individuals achieve mental typing function, and in the future, it will also enable paralyzed individuals to walk, blind people to see, and ultimately achieve a "human-machine symbiosis".
Last May, Neuralink obtained approval for human clinical trials from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In September of the same year, the company announced its first human brain computer interface experiment. Previously, there were reports that thousands of people were queuing up for the Neuralink brain implant device to be implanted.
The company previously stated that it plans to implant chips for over 22000 people by 2030.
Neuralink was founded in 2016 and aims to establish a communication channel between the human brain and external devices: by implanting ultra-fine wires into the brain and connecting these threads to a custom designed chip that contains electrodes that can read information about neuronal groups. Although this technology has a history of several decades, the company's innovation lies in making implants wireless and increasing the number of implanted electrodes.
According to the company's website, its PRIME study is an experiment on its wireless brain computer interface, aimed at evaluating the safety and effectiveness of the Neuralink wireless fully implantable brain computer interface, allowing paralyzed patients to control external devices with their thoughts.
According to previous recruitment information, patients who are paralyzed due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are eligible to participate in clinical trials. It is reported that this human trial will last for six years, and participants will first participate in an 18 month study. Afterwards, they will spend at least two hours a week researching brain computer interfaces.
However, the specific situation of the first human to receive a brain computer interface has not yet been announced. Netizens are also discussing and curious about the detailed information of the first subject.