Last Friday, August 28th, Elon Musk presented the progress of Neuralink, a chip implanted under the skull that allows the brain to communicate with a computer. The operation of the chip was presented on the example of a pig.
Three pigs were presented: the first one was without a chip, the second one had a device implanted in the brain and then removed, demonstrating the absence of side effects of this technology, while the third one has a working device in the brain that receive signals from the brain area associated with the snout. When the pig touched the ground, signals showing the activity of certain neurons appeared on the screen.
The chip sends data to the computer via Bluetooth and connects to the cells in the brain using 1024 tiny electrodes. The company has announced that radio technology will be used instead in the future. Charging the device is to be done wirelessly.
For the moment the capabilities of the chip are limited – it can only receive signals and send them back to the computer.
Neuralink has ambitious goals – it wants to treat people with diseases such as Parkinson or depression. Elon Musk also mentioned that this technology can help prevent artificial intelligence from getting out of people’s control in the future by increasing their memory capacity or accelerating their thought processes. It is also predicted that memories will be able to be recorded and recreated. Elon Musk has also already predicted that technology will even allow music to be played directly to the brain.
However, the project is still in the initial phase. It is not known when it will appear on the market. The company is waiting for permission to conduct tests on people.
You will find a presentation here:
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