Jonathan Ra | Noor Photos | Getty Images
Neuralink, Elon Musk’s startup, said on Wednesday that part of its brain implant malfunctioned after implanting the system in a human patient for the first time.
Neuralink builds brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) that could eventually help paralyzed patients control external technology using only their thoughts. The company’s system, called Link, uses 1,024 electrodes spread across 64 “threads” thinner than a human hair to record neural signals. website.
In January, Neuralink implanted the device into a patient, 29-year-old Noland Arbaugh, as part of a study testing its safety. Neuralink said in a statement that it showed live footage of Arbaugh’s BCI use in March. April blog post The surgery went “very smoothly”.
But Neuralink said in its report that within weeks of the surgery, some of the lines in Abbo’s brain disappeared. blog post Wednesday. That means there are fewer active electrodes, limiting the company’s ability to measure Link’s speed and accuracy.
Neuralink did not disclose how many strands were retracted from the tissue. The company did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
As a solution, Neuralink said it modified the recording algorithm, enhanced the user interface, and worked on improving the technology for converting signals into cursor movements, the blog post said.Neuralink reportedly considered removing the implant, but the issue did not pose an immediate risk to Abo’s safety wall street journal, who reported this issue earlier. Neuralink reportedly shared its blog post after The Wall Street Journal asked the company about the issue.
Although some of the wires were retracted from Arbaugh’s brain tissue, Neuralink said he used the company’s BCI system for about eight hours a day during the week and often more than 10 hours a day on weekends.
According to the blog post, Abbo said Link was like an “overload of luxury” that helped him “reconnect with the world.”
Neuralink is not the only company building a BCI system; the technology has been explored in academia for decades. Neuralink still has a long road to safety and efficacy testing before it can win approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to commercialize the technology.
About The Author
