Nolan Arbo, the first user of the Neuralink neural interface developed by Elon Musk’s company, shared his impressions of life with the chip implanted in the brain. Arbaugh in an interview with Scientific American said About the advantages and disadvantages of using neurotechnology.
Arbaugh was paralyzed from the neck down after an accident in 2016. A computer circuit board was implanted into his skull and an array of thin electrodes was implanted into his brain. According to Arbaugh, he does not feel the chip and would not even suspect its existence if he had not known about the operation.
The neuroimplant significantly improved Arbo’s quality of life. He said he was able to “reconnect with the world” thanks to Neuralink technology. A week after surgery, Arbo learned to mentally control the cursor. Using a special interface, one can browse websites and social networks, send text messages, work with applications and play video games. Arbo’s favorite games are chess and Civilization VI.
The device has one drawback – the need for regular charging. This is why Arbo frequently interrupts gaming sessions. Also in February, the implant malfunctioned and Arbo lost 85% of its functionality. It turned out that the problem was with the device itself; The electrodes had slipped. By reconfiguring the operating algorithm of the system, Neuralink managed to restore most of the functions of the implant.
The Neuralink project was implemented in 2016, and the first demonstration of a device that can transmit brain signals via Bluetooth took place in July 2019. The company began recruiting volunteers to implant a chip into the brain last September. The aim of the study is to evaluate the safety of the surgical robot to be used for implantation of the implant and chip. Neuralink had previously conducted tests on animals, including a monkey that played video games using the implant.
Previously in Ryazan removed Elon Musk’s “space train” video.