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Elon Musk’s braintech startup Neuralink is developing brain implants that allow disabled people to control computers with their thoughts. live streaming A video released Wednesday showed the first-ever user performing several tasks in his head.
Former Texas A&M University athlete Noland Arbaugh, 29, was paralyzed in a 2016 diving accident that left him with no sensation from the shoulders down. In January, Arbaugh became the first human patient to test the brain chip.
On Wednesday, he demonstrated how to use a mouse cursor, play online chess, and pause music.
https://t.co/OMIeGGjYtG
— Neuralink (@neuralink) March 20, 2024
Arbaugh said the chip helped him stay up until 6 a.m. playing Civilization 6, a turn-based strategy video game.
Related: Elon Musk says Neuralink has implanted the first ‘telepathic’ device into the human brain — what does this mean?
“It’s not perfect. I would say we ran into some problems,” he said in the video. “I don’t want people to think this is the end of the journey. There’s a lot of work to do, but it’s already changed my life.”
The Neuralink chip is a coin-sized implant called telepathy that works in the part of the brain that controls movement. The company says the chip captures a user’s brain activity and allows the user to intentionally control devices such as computers and smartphones without having to move.
Arbaugh explained that we first need to distinguish between imagined movements and attempted movements. He experimented with moving his right hand in different directions, developing an intuition for how to imagine the movement of the cursor.
Related: Elon Musk’s brain implant has been approved for use in humans. “You will be able to save and replay your memories.”
“It was basically like applying force to the cursor,” he said, later adding that “all you had to do was stare anywhere on the screen” and the cursor would move to where you wanted it to go.
Users on X expressed hope and fear For technology.
Something like this happens… pic.twitter.com/FekG7e1BkF
— Satoshi Club (@esatoshiclub) March 20, 2024
Existing technologies on the market for people with disabilities include eye-tracking technology from companies such as Tobii Dynavox, which can convert minute eye movements into text, which can then be translated into synthetic speech.
Companies such as Blackrock Neurotech and Paradromics are also working on developing brain implants.
Although brain implant technology is still in its infancy, Musk pointed to its long-term potential.
“In the long term, it is possible to pass signals from the brain’s motor cortex through damaged areas of the spine, allowing people to walk again and use their arms normally,” Musk said. claimed.
Related: Elon Musk’s Neuralink under investigation for allegedly endangering human safety
Neuralink only follows Musk on X, but Asked “Who’s next?” on Thursday’s platform.
The startup’s first clinical trial, which the company calls “the first clinical trial of its kind to be conducted in humans,” will target people with limited or incapacitated use of their hands due to ALS or spinal cord injury. We are currently recruiting.
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