Science Fiction Becomes Reality With First Human Neuralink Implant

(WatchDogReport.org) – South African billionaire and Neuralink founder Elon Musk announced on January 29 that the first person to receive an implant with Neuralink hardware is not only recovering well but also showing promising signs in initial results. The famous tech entrepreneur said that the surgery, which was the first executed by his company, took place on January 28. Experts noted that the moment became one of the most important in medicine’s modern history, as it represented a landmark for the prototype brain medical device.

According to various reports, animal testing started with the Neuralink hardware in September 2023, with the product being described by many experts as a “wireless brain-computer interface” that was also “fully implantable.” Musk has said on numerous occasions he hopes that his company can end up helping people with paralysis to interact with external devices with “only their thoughts.”

When the animal testing started, the South African billionaire said on his Twitter account, “This has the potential to restore full body movement.” He added that his company hopes to play a crucial role in Artificial Intelligence civilization risk reduction by enhancing human-to-technology bandwidth by numerous orders of magnitude in the long term. Musk also suggested that what his company is trying to do would’ve been beneficial for “Stephen Hawking.”

In September 2023, Neuralink announced plans to conduct tests that involved the implantation of the device in the brain region responsible for motor function. The company has explained that the implant is meant to transmit brain signals to a cellphone app that would decode the movement’s intention. Neuralink also pointed out that, ultimately, the main goal of the brain implant startup would be to enable people with paralysis to easily operate a keyboard and even manipulate a computer through their thoughts.

In May 2023, the company received clearance from the FDA for human clinical trials. A couple of months later, Neuralink started to recruit patients with quadriplegia.