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Neuralink, the brain-computer interface company led by Elon Musk, announced that it will begin a new phase of clinical trials in the United States in October, attempting to directly convert human "thoughts" into text through a brain implant. Neuralink President DJ Seo stated, "If you are thinking about something, we will be able to detect it and convert it into text." This research is being conducted through an Investigational Medical Device Exemption (IDE) granted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, with the primary goal of helping patients with language disorders or aphasia communicate more smoothly with the outside world. Currently, several companies are testing brain-computer interface technology, assisting patients in controlling computers and inputting data via virtual keyboards using brainwaves. Neuralink's research goes a step further, directly reading brain language cortex activity, bypassing intermediate input processes, which could significantly shorten communication delays and allow patients to immediately convert their "inner thoughts" into text. Simultaneously advancing in multiple locations globally, targeting individuals with severe disabilities, Neuralink has already conducted five clinical trials in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates. This new trial will be the sixth, and for the first time, it explicitly targets the application scenario of speech disorders. If the trials are successful, it will revolutionize the quality of life for patients with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), stroke, and severe paralysis. Future Vision: Healthy People Can Also Communicate with AI "Thinking" DJ Seo further revealed that Neuralink's ultimate blueprint is not limited to medical applications. The company anticipates that within three to four years, the first batch of "physically healthy" users will voluntarily have Neuralink implanted. At that time, it may be possible to communicate directly with a Large Language Model (LLM) using "thought," and instantly transmit AI responses back to the user through earphones, forming a complete "brain circuit." This means that in the future, one will not need to speak to complete queries, conversations, or even control other smart devices using only their thoughts. The Light and Shadow of Science Fiction From the perspective of assisting severely ill patients, this technology is almost a "utopia" from science fiction films. However, when it is pushed into the consumer market, hidden concerns also emerge—for example, mobile phones and social media algorithms have drastically changed human interaction behavior, and the widespread adoption of brain-computer interfaces may further entrust human privacy, thoughts, and even behavioral patterns to technology companies. Neuralink's clinical trials are still in their early stages, and widespread adoption will require validation in terms of safety, ethics, and regulatory compliance. However, as the technology continues to mature, the debate surrounding the "integration of humans and technology" is bound to intensify in the coming years.

The Financial Times reports that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has co-founded a startup called Merge Labs, which is expected to compete with Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company Neuralink, as well as other players in the same market, including Precision Neuroscience and Synchron. Besides Altman, Alex Blania, CEO of World, a startup Altman previously co-founded, will also be a co-founder of Merge Labs. However, the primary funding will come from OpenAI's venture capital team, providing approximately $8.5 million. The name Merge Labs originates from the term "merge," which Altman mentioned in 2017, signifying the combination of the human brain and computers to allow humans to "evolve." Altman has long been interested in brain-computer interface applications and even predicted that they would become widespread as early as 2025. While companies including Neuralink currently argue that brain-computer technology is not yet mainstream, Altman anticipates that high-bandwidth brain-computer interfaces will soon be available, driven by new technologies. The establishment of Merge Labs will make it a direct competitor to Neuralink and other similar companies, and is also expected to intensify the verbal battle between Elon Musk and Sam Altman.

Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company, Neuralink, is actively expanding its technological applications. Recent news indicates that the company has joined a research project on an artificial intelligence bionic eye, led by research institutions in the United States and Europe. According to publicly available information from the U.S. government's medical research registry, ClinicalTrials, the project is sponsored by the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) and is in collaboration with Spanish researchers. Its goal is to address key technological challenges in advancing the development of a "smart bionic eye." This research project is currently in the clinical trial phase, recruiting patients by invitation only, and targeting individuals with severe visual impairment. The research team hopes to develop a visual reconstruction device that allows blind people to "see" again by combining artificial intelligence algorithms and sensing technology. According to the trial description, the final product is expected to assist blind people in activities such as facial recognition, outdoor navigation, and even reading, improving their autonomy in daily life. It is noteworthy that while Neuralink's specific role in this research has not yet been revealed, the project explicitly mentions that Neuralink's patient data will be included "when conditions are right," suggesting that the company will be responsible for providing some data or equipment related to brain-computer interface technology. Neuralink has long been dedicated to establishing a direct communication bridge between the human brain and computers through micro-implantable chips. Having conducted numerous animal experiments, it completed its first human chip implantation test in 2024, becoming one of the most watched innovative companies in the brain-computer interface field. If bionic eyes can be further integrated with brain-computer technology in the future, it may be possible to allow visual signals not only to enter the eyeball through a bionic device but also to be directly transmitted to the cerebral cortex, achieving a higher level of neural perception. Currently, this research project is still in the preliminary clinical validation stage and adopts a conservative invitation mechanism, not open to the general public. However, its potential applications have already attracted significant attention from the medical and scientific communities. Especially with the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence technology, how to combine neuroscience and mechanosensing to reconstruct human perception has become an important development trend in the next wave of brain-computer and biomedical technology intersections. For Neuralink, participating in this international bionic eye research will not only help expand its brain-computer technology application scope but may also accumulate more key experience in medical device approval and clinical validation, laying the foundation for its future commercialization.

Sources indicate that Neuralink, Elon Musk's brain-computer interface company, plans to raise approximately $500 million in a new round of funding and has already held preliminary talks with potential investors. Neuralink's current market valuation is around $85 billion, and the final outcome of this funding round is still pending, so the actual amount raised may vary, but it is expected to increase its market capitalization to $9 billion. However, Neuralink has not responded to these rumors. Last September, Neuralink's implantable electrode array product, Blindsight, received a Breakthrough Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its potential to restore vision in the human brain. At the end of last year, it also announced that its brain implanted chip and experimental robotic arm control project had been approved for research. Prior to this, participants in the "PRIME" project, who received the implanted chip, were already able to control a computer mouse cursor or perform keyboard input through thought, enabling them to browse the web, watch live streams, post on social media, play online games, and even perform CAD design work. Based on current developments, Neuralink hopes to help paralyzed patients stand up again through implanted chips, or enable patients with neurodegenerative diseases to directly control external computer devices through their brain's will, thereby assisting their personal mobility and operational needs.

Following its announcement in late September that its Blindsight product, which restores vision for the visually impaired, had received a Breakthrough Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Neuralink recently announced that its brain-implanted chip and experimental robotic arm control project have been approved for research. This research, named "CONVOY," will allow participants to control an external assistive robotic arm through thought via the N1 implanted chip. Participants in the "PRIME" project, who previously received the implanted chip, can also participate in "CONVOY" related tests. Prior to this, participants in the "PRIME" project were already able to control a computer mouse cursor and perform keyboard input through thought, enabling them to browse the web, watch live streams, post on social media, play online games, and even perform CAD design work. Compared to the "PRIME" project, which primarily involves an implanted chip connecting directly to a computer for digital signal input, the "CONVOY" project aims to allow participants to control external assistive devices such as robotic arms using their thoughts. This would enable paralyzed individuals to use thought-based robotic arms to grasp objects or achieve independent movement using leg assistive devices. We're excited to announce the approval and launch of a new feasibility trial to extend BCI control using the N1 Implant to an investigational assistive robotic...

Neuralink, which continues to invest in brain implant chip technology, recently announced that its Blindsight product, which claims to restore sight to the visually impaired, has received the Breakthrough Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This signifies that the experimental product has been recognized as having significant medical application potential and will expedite its approval process. Blindsight works by implanting a microelectrode array into the visual cortex of the brain. This stimulates neurons in the brain, creating visual images and allowing individuals who are blind, have damaged optic nerves, or are born blind to experience vision artificially. Theoretically, increasing the size of the implanted electrode array can improve the clarity of the visual images generated by the brain, providing visually impaired individuals with a more realistic visual experience. However, market experts also believe that Blindsight may face many challenges. These include the possibility that congenitally blind individuals may not be able to successfully generate vision even with an implanted electrode array because their brains lack the capacity for visual processing. Furthermore, the sudden onset of vision may cause discomfort. Currently, the implanted electrode array only produces a small amount of light perception, insufficient for discernible vision. Additionally, vision reconstruction requires not only improving visual acuity but also enhancing color richness and the stereoscopic effect created through visual depth, potentially involving highly complex engineering. Despite these challenges, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) considers the technology behind Blindsight to be innovative and potentially helpful in improving blindness caused by accidents, illnesses, or congenital blindness. Therefore, the FDA recognizes its technological breakthrough and will expedite its approval process. Currently, Blindsight is still in the development stage and has not yet received regulatory approval for clinical trials; therefore, its widespread use in general medical procedures may still take considerable time.

Following the announcement in late January that Neuralink had completed its first personal brain implantation chip surgery, Elon Musk revealed in a podcast hosted by a Russian-American computer scientist that a second personal brain implantation chip surgery has been completed. He also announced plans to complete eight more surgeries this year, allowing Neuralink's brain implantation chips to accumulate more clinical trial data. While revealing that the second volunteer also had a spinal cord injury, Musk did not disclose much further information about the second volunteer. The first volunteer who received the implantation chip was paralyzed from the neck down due to a diving accident. The chip helps paralyzed individuals control external devices through thought and communication via electronic devices. Neuralink also stated that it has made progress in restoring the limb movement abilities of paralyzed individuals. This includes inserting electrodes into the spinal cord to transmit signals that induce muscle contractions in the paralyzed arms and legs, thus improving the paralysis caused by spinal cord problems. In addition, by implanting chips into the human brain, it may be possible to realize a completely new human-computer interaction mode in the future. For example, operating external devices or receiving external information through thinking may be a more unimaginable operating experience at present. For example, patients with spinal cord injuries or ALS may be able to operate related devices through thinking as a means of mobility assistance.

Last year, after announcing approval from US regulators for its brain-implanted chip trial and recruiting volunteers for human trials of brain-computer interfaces, Elon Musk recently revealed that Neuralink has completed its first brain-implanted chip surgery, with the recipient recovering well. This experimental project will be called "PRIME," an abbreviation for "Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface." The project primarily evaluates the effects of implanting an device called N1 into the brain using the surgical robot R1. This aims to assist paralyzed individuals in controlling external devices through thought, such as communicating via digital computer input. It also helps patients with spinal cord injuries or ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) to operate related devices through thought, serving as a mobility aid. Furthermore, the brain-implanted chip may enable entirely new human-computer interaction modes in the future, such as operating external devices through thought, and even receiving external information—experiences currently difficult to imagine. Prior to this, Neuralink had conducted trials on pigs and monkeys. While it boasted successful brainwave communication in pigs, the trials on monkeys resulted in numerous deaths, leading to considerable public condemnation. The first human to receive an implant from @Neuralink yesterday is recovering well. Initial results show promising neuron spike detection.

Following Elon Musk's recent announcement that Neuralink will conduct its first human trial this year, the company has now begun recruiting volunteers for its brain-computer interface (BCI) human trial, named "PRIME," an abbreviation for "Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface." According to the description, this trial will primarily evaluate the effects of implanting an device called N1 into the human brain using the surgical robot R1. If successful, it could assist paralyzed individuals in controlling external connected devices through brain activity, such as communicating with others via digital computer input. It would also help patients with spinal cord injuries or ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) to operate related devices through brain activity, serving as a mobility aid. Neuralink has already received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its application to conduct trials of implanted chips in the human brain, emphasizing that this is a significant advancement in brain-computer interface technology. However, market observers believe that even if Neuralink can prove its device is safe for human implantation, it will still take several years, or even more than 10 years, to obtain commercial approval. This is due to the controversy surrounding Neuralink's previous failed animal trials, coupled with concerns about potential adverse effects on humans from devices designed to connect to the brain. On the other hand, Neuralink's direct competitor, Synchron, has already gained an advantage in this field, so it remains uncertain whether Neuralink can catch up successfully.

At the VivaTech event in Paris, France, Elon Musk revealed that his brain-computer interface technology company, Neuralink, will conduct its first human trial this year. According to Musk, this human trial will involve implanting the device in a quadriplegic or amputee patient, but he did not disclose the number of patients or the duration of the trial. Neuralink recently received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its application to conduct trials of implanted chips in the human brain, emphasizing this as a significant advancement in brain-computer interface technology. Prior to this, Neuralink had conducted trials on pigs and monkeys. While it boasted successful brainwave connection in pigs, its trials on monkeys resulted in numerous deaths, leading to considerable public criticism. Previous reports indicated that the FDA was concerned about the potential adverse effects of the lithium batteries used in its devices and would therefore refuse approval for Neuralink's human trial application. However, based on Neuralink's recent announcement, it appears that it has successfully addressed the FDA's concerns. However, market opinion holds that even if Neuralink can prove that implanting the device in the human body is quite safe, it will still take several years, or even more than 10 years, to obtain commercial approval. This is because of the controversy surrounding Neuralink's previous failed animal trials, and concerns that the device used to connect to the brain may still have adverse effects on the human body.