Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain tech company, has taken a historic step by implanting a chip in a human’s brain. Among other things, this could help people who are paralysed by allowing them to communicate with thoughts through the chip.
Why you need to know this:
This breakthrough opens up new possibilities in healthcare. It could revolutionise care for people with paralysis.
Neuralinks technology opens new avenues for people with severe physical disabilities, especially paralysed patients. The ability to operate computers just by thinking of words or opening programmes without a mouse could significantly improve their way of communicating and interacting with the world. Nothing has yet been disclosed about the identity and health status of the study’s subject.
Blackrock Neurotech
Neuralink’s technology is not unique of its kind. Companies such as Blackrock Neurotech have made similar strides. For example, Blackrock managed to get a paralysed patient to shake hands with former President Obama using two implants and a robotic arm.
Successful test with animals
Neuralink has previously conducted successful tests with animals, including a monkey that played the game Pong based on brain activity rather than a physical controller. These early tests were crucial for refining the technology and preparing for the first human trials.
Safety, reliability and applicability in everyday life need to be extensively researched and tested. Nevertheless, this first step offers hope for the future and opens the door to a world where technology and human brain are seamlessly connected.
Onward Medical
Striking news following Musk’s experiment: Today’s hit on the broad market at Euronext in Brussels is Gerard & Anton Award winner Onward Medical. The developer of therapy for patients with spinal cord injury shot up as much as 43.6 percent to 3.39 euros, approaching the price level of late 2023.
Musk’s test aims to see if a test subject can move a cursor on a computer screen just by thinking about it. The test is a first step toward developing brain chips that can resolve paralysis in humans, the exact goal that Onward is also striving for through its combination of implants and spinal cord stimulators.
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