Elon Musk has a finger in every pie.
When he’s not launching into literal space and cyberspace, the billionaire’s promoting one of Tesla’s vehicles, such as the long-awaited Cybertruck.
But Musk owns another company, and it’s looking for a volunteer for an unusual experiment.
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That company is Neuralink, and the easiest way to explain what it does is, researching how to insert chips into people’s brains as a way to help restore lost limb function.
“The short-term goal of the company is to build a generalized brain interface and restore autonomy to those with debilitating neurological conditions and unmet medical needs,” Neuralink founder, DJ Seo, told Bloomberg News.
So, why does Neuralink need a volunteer?
As you probably guessed it, they need a volunteer to test how the device will work on an actual person.
Yes, that’s right – the volunteer will have a hole drilled in their skull and a device inserted by a robot.
Doesn’t sound overly appealing but then again, it is for a good cause.
The device will be made up of the chip, about the size of a quarter, and tiny wires and electrodes thinner than a strand of human hair.
As for how many volunteers are required, the exact number is unknown, but originally the company had planned to get approval to implant the device into 10 patients.
However, Neuralink then negotiated a lower number with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Apparently, Elon Musk doesn’t plan on stopping at conditions affecting mobility.
The tech mogul has ambitious plans to use the chips with mental health conditions like depression and schizophrenia, and also to ‘treat’ developmental conditions like autism.
Not only does Neuralink hope to provide medial applications, it aims to ‘unlock human potential’.
“The long-term goal is to have this available for billions of people and unlock human potential and go beyond our biological capabilities,” Seo said.
