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Heavy! Musk's brain implant company is officially approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for human testing!

author:Technology Vision
Heavy! Musk's brain implant company is officially approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for human testing!

Neuralink, a brain implant technology company founded by Elon Musk, recently received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its first human clinical trial, despite safety concerns and reports that the company is experimenting on animals.

The company used Musk-owned Twitter to announce the approval, saying the achievement was the result of close collaboration with the FDA and represented an important first step that promises to help many people in the future. What is Neuralink?

Heavy! Musk's brain implant company is officially approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for human testing!

Musk, the CEO of Tesla, Twitter and SpaceX, co-founded Neuralink Corp. in 2016 with a team of scientists and engineers with a stated mission to create "a universal brain interface that meets the autonomy of those who cannot meet medical needs today and unlock the human potential of tomorrow." The company is building a brain-to-computer interface called "The Link" that lets people use their minds to control computers, mobile devices, and mechanical limbs.

"The Link" is a coin-sized brain chip implanted under the skull during surgery. According to Neuralink's website, the chip records neural activity through 1,024 electrodes distributed on 64 threads thinner than a human hair.

"These highly flexible, ultra-thin threads are essential to minimize implantation and post-implantation damage," the company's website states. According to the website, the lines are so small that a human hand can't insert them, so the company has specially developed a neurosurgical robot to perform the operation.

Heavy! Musk's brain implant company is officially approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for human testing!

What is Neuralink's potential impact?

After the chip is implanted in the brain, the device should be able to connect the person's brain directly to the computer, allowing them to think faster and clearer than before.

The chip could potentially treat diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, spinal cord injury, blindness, obesity, autism, depression and Parkinson's disease. Musk has previously said he is confident enough in the device to be implanted in his own children, despite its skepticism.

Last winter, Musk showed a video showing a monkey typing thoughts through a brain chip. The video raised concerns among some about animal welfare violations.

Other possible applications for Neuralink include improving people's ability to learn and remember new information, enabling people to communicate with machines, eliminating keyboards or touchscreens, and increasing internet speed and coverage.

Of course, there are some immediate concerns about the device, including high-risk brain damage or infection and potential misuse by government and security agencies. There is not much research on brain-computer interfaces.

Heavy! Musk's brain implant company is officially approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for human testing!

What are the concerns about Neuralink?

There are reports that federal agencies have investigated Neuralink, and employees have concerns about the company and its products being tested on animals.

According to Reuters, the U.S. Department of Transportation investigated Neuralink's conduct in February for its handling of unsafe packaging and transportation of implants removed from monkeys' brains, which could carry infectious diseases.

Reuters also reported that Neuralink came under federal investigation last year for potential animal welfare violations, with some employees complaining that its animal testing was too hasty, leading to senseless suffering and death in monkeys, pigs and sheep. According to the report, Musk pressured employees to obtain FDA approval, which led to hasty and misguided animal surgery.

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