Neuralink, the tech startup owned by Elon Musk, has released the first video of the person implanted with the Neuralink brain chip. The Neuralink chip is meant to allow humans to control external devices simply by thinking. Neuralink announced that it had implanted the chip on January 30.
Appearing on a stream on X with a Neuralink engineer, the subject, a 29-year old male who is paralysed from the shoulder downwards due to a diving accident eight years ago, stated that the device has allowed him to do activities such as playing chess online on his computer. He also stated that it allows him to play his favourite video games.
According to the subject, he plays chess by "imagining" that he is moving the pieces with his computer cursor as an able-bodied person would. The Neuralink device in his brain then translates the "imagined" movements into actual movements of the cursor on his computer.
"I just stare into the computer and the cursor will then move where i want it to allowing him to play the game using only my thinking," he said.
The subject also states that the operation to implant the device took only a day in the hospital without any side effects or cognitive impairments. The chip implant's battery also lasts about 8 hours after which the subject can charge it for use again.
"I should say that we have run into some issues with the device but i can say that it has really changed my life and people thinking of applying for the human trials have nothing to be afraid of," he said.
You can watch the full video here.