Neuralink, a company founded by Elon Musk, has successfully implanted their device (an implantable, brain-computer interface) into three human volunteers with successful results, according to the company’s press release. The participants were all paralysed from the neck down due to either spinal cord injuries or motor neuron disease; now, though, they are able to use a computer by moving the stylus with their thoughts and by eye tracking.
The details of the PRIME (Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface) trial, available at clinicaltrials.gov, explain that the company estimates that this trial will be completed in January 2026. However, two more participants are planned to receive the implant, and the whole study will be completed in 2031.
Although there are no current research publications, an article in Nature outlines how the implant works and how the procedure for the second participant went. The implant is approximately the size of a coin and is surgically implanted into the participant’s motor cortex, situated on the top of the brain. It consists of 1024 electrodes that connect to neurons within the motor cortex. The electrodes communicate with an external device via Bluetooth, and the device is powered by a battery within the implant.
But what is the implant supposed to do? The current PRIME trial is focused on allowing the paralysed participants to regain communication abilities by moving a mouse cursor with their thoughts. The implant would restore these functions by reading the neural activity in the motor cortex and sending that data to the computer. The data received from the implant is analysed using the company’s algorithm, which turns those signals into commands for manipulating the mouse on the computer screen.
Once the company, founded by Musk in 2016, developed the prototype, it began preclinical trials. These trials have garnered a lot of public and professional backlash. However, they did have success, as demonstrated by a now viral video of a monkey with the implant playing ping-pong on a tablet with his thoughts. There is also concern about how this technology, which accesses personal brain activity, could be used in ways that Neuralink hasn’t addressed. Despite this backlash, the company was approved for human trials by the FDA in 2023. The first human participant received the implant in January 2024.
According to Neuralink, the current human trial is overwhelmingly positive. The first participant has been able to use a computer for up to 8 hours a day, scroll the Internet, and play computer games. However, there have been some complications, such as approximately 85% of the electrodes unattaching during the first participant’s test, which required a readjustment of the computer system.
So, what does the company have in mind for the future? The data collected in this initial trial will set the stage for the company’s future goals. According to Nurealink, the implant’s end goal is to ‘restore motor function and mobility, sensory functions and visual functions and treat neurological disorders’ such as Parkinson’s, epilepsy, and bipolar disorder. However, the company’s lack of transparency raises many questions that need to be answered before these goals are reached.
