2024-02-14 10:56:44
These types of brain implants connect a person with computer equipment.
Elon Musk confirmed that his company Neurolink successfully implanted the first brain chip in a personafter years of testing on animals.
The billionaire and CEO of the social network X is determined to push technologies to another level, which is why together with his company they have worked on this device.
This type of implant connects the person with a computer equipmentwhich is called brain-computer interface or BCI (Brain-Computer Interface).
Machine receives and measures the activity of neurons of the person obtaining a signal, to later be processed by computer equipment.
Through Neuralink’s official website, it is specified that the company’s purpose is to “develop a brain interface to restore autonomy to those who today have medical needs.” They also added that they want to “unlock the human potential of tomorrow.”
Elon Musk himself has stated that Telepathy, the name given to this brain chip, could control your phone or computerand through them, almost any electronic device.
After three years of clinical trials with monkeys, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized its testing in humans.
Thanks to this, the On January 29, the first implant in humans was performedto which the CEO of X published that he is already recovering well.
For the moment, the function of the implant will be read brain activity, to transmit orders that help restore certain brain functions.
“Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a typist or an auctioneer. That’s the goal“commented the billionaire.
How is the Neuralink brain chip implanted?
As expected, The operation to implant this brain chip is carried out by a robot and consists of inserting the device, which is the size of a coin, into the brain.
N1 is eight millimeters in diameter and has 64 ultra-thin cables called threads, attempting to resemble the size of neurons in the brain. This is equivalent to the diameter of a hair divided by 10.
Neuralink explained the operation is carried out by a robot because The implant threads are so fine that they cannot be inserted by a human hand.
That is why the surgical robot used in the operation, is designed to do it safely and reliably.
The robot makes a two-millimeter incision that dilates to eight millimeters, exposing the area of the skull where the implant is installed. In this way, it is inserted into the brain avoiding touching any vein or artery.
The installation operation can take up to two hours and the user can be under partial anesthesia throughout the surgery.