Elon Musk Unveils Neuralink's Plans for a Brain Reading

Elon Musk's Neuralink, the secret society that develops brain-machine interfaces, presented to the public some of the technologies it was developing for the first time. The goal is to eventually begin implanting devices in paralyzed humans, allowing them to control phones or computers.

The first big breakthrough is in flexible "threads", which are less likely to damage the brain than materials currently used in brain-machine interfaces. These threads also offer the ability to transfer a larger volume of data, according to a white paper titled "Elon Musk & Neuralink." The summary states that the system could include "up to 3,072 electrodes per array spread over 96 threads".

The yarns have a width of 4 to 6 μm, which makes them much thinner than a human hair. In addition to developing threads, Neuralink's other great breakthrough is a machine that automatically integrates them.

Musk made a great presentation of Neuralink's research Tuesday night, although he said it was not just hype. "The main reason for this presentation is recruitment," said Musk, asking people to apply to apply. Max Hodak, chairman of Neuralink, also came on stage and admitted that he was not sure originally that "this technology was a good idea," but that Musk convinced him that it would be possible.

In the future, Neuralink scientists hope to use a laser beam to cross the skull instead of drilling holes, they said in interviews with The New York Times. According to this report, the first experiments will be conducted with neuroscientists from Stanford University. "We hope to have that in a human patient by the end of next year," Musk said.

Photo of Elizabeth Lopatto / The Verge

"It will not be sudden, Nueuralink will have this neural lash and will start conquering people's brains," said Musk. "In the end", he wants to "achieve a symbiosis with artificial intelligence". And even in a "benign scenario", humans would be "left behind". He therefore wishes to create a technology allowing a "fusion with the AI". Later, we added: "we are a brain in a tank, and this tank is our skull". The goal is to read the neural points of this brain.

The first paralyzed person to receive a brain implant allowing him to control a computer cursor was Matthew Nagle. In 2006, Nagle, who had a spinal injury, was playing Pong using only his mind. the basic movement required only took him four days to master, he said The New York Times. Since then, people paralyzed with brain implants have also developed objects and moved robotic arms in laboratories, as part of scientific research. The system that Nagle and others used was called BrainGate and was originally developed at Brown University.

Image: Neuralink

"Neuralink did not come out of nowhere, there is a long history of academic research here," Hodak said at a presentation on Tuesday. "We are, in the best sense of the word, built on the shoulders of giants." However, none of the existing technologies match Neuralink's goal of directly reading neural peaks minimally.

The system presented today, if it is functional, can represent a substantial advance over older technologies. BrainGate is based on the Utah Array, a series of rigid needles that can accommodate up to 128 electrode channels. Not only is the number of channels promised by Neuralink less promising – that is, the brain is collecting less data – it is also more rigid than Neuralink's leads. This is a problem for long-term functionality: the brain moves in the skull, but not the needles in the network, which causes damage. The thin polymers used by Neuralink could solve this problem.

Image: Nueralink

However, Neuralink technology is more difficult to implant than Utah Array precisely because it is so flexible. To combat this problem, the company has developed "a neurosurgical robot capable of inserting six wires (192 electrodes) per minute. [automatically]"According to the white paper, in the photos it looks like a cross between a microscope and a sewing machine, and it also avoids the blood vessels, which could result in less inflammatory reaction in the brain, the paper says.

For Musk, the central problem of interaction with AI is actually "bandwidth". You can receive information much faster than you broadcast it with your voice or thumb. Its goal is that this system allows humans to communicate faster with machines directly from their brains.

Image: Neuralink

Finally, the journal reports that Neuralink has developed a custom chip that is better able to read, clean and amplify brain signals. At the present time, it can transmit data only via a wired connection (it uses USB-C), but the ultimate goal is to create a system capable of wireless operation.

This wireless lens will be incorporated into a product that Neuralink calls the "N1 Sensor", designed to be integrated into a human body and transmit its wireless data. It can read fewer neurons than the current USB-based prototype. Neuralink intends to implant four of these sensors, three in the motor areas and one in a somatosensor zone. It will connect wirelessly to an external device installed behind the ear, which will contain the only battery. "It will be controlled via an iPhone application," said Hodak.

"However, we must follow the entire process of the FDA," he added. "We have not done it yet." they want it to be "something more similar to Lasik surgery," including eliminating the need for general anesthesia. Although the first patients do not have this non-invasive experience.

Image: Neuralink

Image: Neuralink

At present, however, the company is still working on rats to ensure stability of the platform. But the technology, if it works, is promising: a "broad bandwidth" brain connection, implanted via robotic surgery. The connection established using thin "threads" flexible would record the activity of many neurons. The hope is to get better results more accurate than previous attempts to brain-machine interfaces.

Image: Neuralink