Neuralink Aims to Change Lives
Neuralink’s website has said that brain-computer interfaces can change people’s lives for the better.
Source: Steve Jurvetson/Wikimedia Commons
It aims to enable people to use this technology at home as opposed to just in the lab, and they are currently recruiting for their first clinical trial.
Neuralink’s Initial Aim Was to Help Paralysis
As outlined in one of Neuralink’s blog posts, the company was initially established to help people with paralysis.
Source: Neuralink/YouTube
The aim was to enable those with paralysis to use neural activity to operate computers and mobile devices.
Elon Musk Has Developed 'Blindsight' with Neuralink
Blindsight is the next project currently in development with Neuralink, with Elon Musk heading up this project.
Source: The Tesla Space/YouTube
The Daily Mail has reported that Blindsight will enable those currently without sight to be able to see.
Blindsight Works by Using Electrical Impulses
Musk says Blindsight will work by using electrical impulses that go straight to the visual cortex.
Source: Kjpargeter/Freepik
These electrical impulses come from repackaged digital camera data in the form of an implant, something Musk hopes will enable those who use the implant to be able to see.
Blindsight Tech Currently Has Low Resolution
As the implant is still in development, Musk has stated that the implant will give users low-resolution vision that looks like early Nintendo graphics.
Source: Gameranx/YouTube
However, Musk has also stated that he is hoping that as time progresses, they will be able to develop graphics that are better than human eyesight.
The Blindsight Implant Has Been Used on Monkeys
As with many clinical trials, the Neuralink Blindsight implant has mostly been tested on monkeys.
Source: @elonmusk/X
In a thread on X, Musk made it clear to his followers that no monkeys had died or been seriously injured during the trials for Neuralink devices.
Neuralink Under Investigation for Animal Deaths
Despite Musk’s claims that no monkeys had died or been seriously injured, The Daily Mail reported that Neuralink was under investigation after 1,500 animal deaths.
Source: Syed Ahmad/Unsplash
However, this number is a rough estimate, as the company hasn’t kept any records on how many animals have been tested and killed.
Elon Musk Applied Pressure on Neuralink Trials
Musk was keen to accelerate the development of Neuralink products, which put a lot of pressure on staff to conduct trials and get results.
Source: Steve Jurvetson/Wikimedia Commons
Reuters reported that this caused some of the experiments to be “botched,” which led to repeated trials and experiments and more animals being killed.
Blindsight Enabled Blind Monkeys to See
As mentioned, Neuralink has been using monkeys as part of their trials, which has enabled them to trial how the technology works.
Source: Jamie Haughton/Unsplash
The Independent has reported that the technology developed by Neuralink has enabled blind monkeys to regain their sight.
Elon Musk Has Given More Questions than Answers
Despite giving various talks on Blindsight, these have led to people having more questions than answers.
Source: Steve Jurvetson/Wikimedia Commons
Futurism has reported that no one truly knows how Blindsight works. Some of the questions left unanswered are whether monkeys were born blind or became blind later on and whether any of their optic nerves were still intact, especially as most brain-computer interfaces want to restore vision, i.e. be used in people who had sight but had since lost it.
Monkey Photos Were Kept a Secret
According to Wired, Neuralink worked with University College Davis when carrying out trials on monkeys. The college refused to release any photos of the trial monkeys.
Source: Anders J/Unsplash
This is one of many things critics are criticizing the Neuralink trials about, but only time will tell whether the trials end up working and enable people to see.