That was fast: Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain implant company, said on Tuesday, January 30, 2024, in a Tweet that it had received a Neuralink brain implant and the procedure was eventually approved and successful. With the news, Musk added that the patient is “recovering well” post-surgery.
Neuralink received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for human tests in May 2023 and began looking for participants during the year’s fall. In the statement, Neuralink claimed that individuals who have “quadriplegia due to cervical spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)” might qualify for the research.
“The initial goal of our BCI is to grant people the ability to control a computer cursor or keyboard using their thoughts alone” further read the statement.
Elon Musk’s company claimed in a tweet last year,
“This is the result of incredible work by the Neuralink team in close collaboration with the FDA and represents an important first step that will one day allow our technology to help many people,”
On the contrary, over the years, there have been several reported potential violations of the Animal Welfare Act, which signifies how the organisation treats and conducts tests on animals. According to a report, as of 2024, Neuralink has killed about 1,500 animals, including more than 280 sheep, pigs and monkeys. Owing to these horrendous violations, the company is facing federal investigations for allegedly violating welfare laws.
The first human received an implant from @Neuralink yesterday and is recovering well.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 29, 2024
Initial results show promising neuron spike detection.
Besides the ongoing trial of brain implants, Elon Musk has not shared many details about the procedure or its status. Nevertheless, he claimed that “initial results show promising neuron spike detection.” A successful device implementation into a human can help the company reach an ascertain milestone and could bring a drastic change in experiencing alternate realities.
