Elon Musk is ready to start the first trial of a brain chip implant after his company Neuralink received a nod from the Food and Drug Administration in May. Thousands of volunteers are prepared to sign up for the clinical tests, while many ask Musk to volunteer. This project is garnering controversies, mainly due to the alleged animal cruelty involved until now. Read ahead to find out more about the Neuralink chip, including how to volunteer for it.
What is the Elon Musk Brain Chip?
Neuralink is a company founded by Elon Musk, attempting to develop technology for revolutionizing human and computer interactions. They aim to insert a chip into the human brain to create a seamless transmission between the person and external devices such as laptops and mobile phones.
Elon Musk’s chip implant company Neuralink is looking for its first volunteer.
They are looking for someone willing to have a piece of their skull removed so that a robotic surgeon can insert thin wires and electrodes into their brain. pic.twitter.com/xs7N63fx6s
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) November 8, 2023
As per reports, this procedure will be conducted with robots that will surgically remove a part of the volunteer’s skull. It will further insert a chip into the brain with micro-wiring that will connect the quarter-sized device to external computers.
This practice aims to help people with paralysis control their cursor and activity on their devices directly through the brain. In the past six years, the company has conducted trials to implant the device through robotic surgery.
Who Can Register for Neuralink Testing?
As per Neuralink’s official blog, they are looking for a patient with limited functions in all four limbs due to spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The volunteer should also have suffered at least one year post-injury without improvement. The volunteer should be between the ages of 22 and 40 and assisted by a consistent and reliable caregiver.
People using an implanted device such as a Pacemaker or Deep Brain Stimulator will not be eligible for the testing. Additionally, people who have a history of seizures, require frequent MRI scans, and/or are receiving transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) treatment will not be allowed to participate either.
To best learn if you are eligible for the trial, sign up on Neuralink’s website with a detailed application form.
What Should A Volunteer Know?
Neuralink’s study is going to expand over six years with two dozen follow-up visits. They will be divided among nine home and in-person clinic visits in the initial year and a half. Additionally, the participants will be required to engage in two weekly research sessions.
The company will provide follow-up care for the next three and a half years with twenty scheduled visits. The participants will also receive compensation for travel and other trial-related costs. No further compensation will be provided as it is a volunteering opportunity.
Concerns About This Testing
Although Elon Musk has received permission to conduct trials of the developing technology, many people are skeptical about the procedure. The experiment was previously shown on animals, including monkeys.
yeah apparently they suffered a lot toohttps://t.co/LRoCjZeqZL
— ♀️ (@femalephilosphr) November 8, 2023
During this trial, 15 out of 23 monkeys were euthanized after the implant broke, got loose, affected the behavior of the monkey, and caused internal bleeding. Despite this, many people are willing to volunteer for the procedure.
Meanwhile, many netizens are urging Musk to become the first human to volunteer for the testing. However, as he doesn’t fit the criteria of volunteer, he isn’t likely to own the first brain chip that could help him manage his social networking platform, X.
