To say that Elon Musk is one of the most controversial figures in technology would be a bit of an understatement. While no one on the planet doubts his genius and track record for innovation, many think that his latest venture may be a bridge too far. While many may find his Tesla Cybertruck to be a horrible design, it’s still a fantastic feat of engineering, and his work on SpaceX has changed the future of space travel. However, his most recent start-up called Neuralink, which has so far gotten over 158 million in funding, has a lot of people very concerned.
You see, the company is developing a brain-computer interface that is said to come with a ton of game-changing benefits for the human race, including the capability of streaming music directly into one’s brain. The tech maverick has been a bit secretive with the details but is set to reveal more information about Neuralink next month. However, with the small crumbs that he’s dropped here and there, he’s already got people’s buzzing. Musks claim the technology ‘could help control hormone levels and use them to our advantage (enhanced abilities and reasoning, anxiety relief, etc..’
He also confirmed that his chip would allow people to ‘” listen to music directly from our chips.” So how does it work? Well, at an event in 2019, Musk mentioned the project briefly describing it to be a “sewing machine-like” device that would connect directly between a chip inserted in a human’s brain and a computer.
For someone to get fitted, they would go through a process similar to laser eye surgery. It would involve the use of a “neurosurgical robot” that would place flexible “threads” inside of a person’s brain. Also, a 2019 research paper says that “Full-bandwidth data streaming” could be available through the use of a USB-C cable connection.
Of course, the potential upside to such technology is quite enticing; Musk believes that it may help people suffering from a host of illnesses and conditions such as Parkinson’s, autism, ALS, brain injuries, dementia, and basically any other type of neurological condition that requires brain calibration.
Not only that, when asked if Neuralink might be used to “retrain the part of the brain which is responsible for causing addiction or depression.” The tech guru said:
“For sure. This is both great and terrifying. Everything we’ve ever sensed or thought has been electrical signals. The early universe was just a soup of quarks and leptons. How did a very small piece of the universe start to think of itself as sentient?”
This would solve a lot of brain/spine injuries & is ultimately essential for AI symbiosis
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 19, 2020
On July 18, Musk issued a call for people with expertise in the area of wearable technology, tweeting:
“If you’ve solved hard problems with phones/ wearables (sealing, signal processing, inductive charging, power management, etc.), please consider working at [Neuralink].”
If you’ve solved hard problems with phones / wearables (sealing, signal processing, inductive charging, power mgmt, etc), please consider working at [email protected]
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 18, 2020
To date, trials have reportedly already taken place on animals, with plans for human testing to be announced later this year. Neuralink has scheduled an event revealing more information on August 28. For more on this astounding story, check out the video below.
