The brain is one of the most complex structures ever to exist. But, what if brains could be made better? What if they could be faster, able to solve more complex problems, and linked directly to the vast network of information we have available via the Internet?
That's the lofty aim of the team at Neuralink. Elon Musk, who founded the firm in 2016, said the company's ultimate goal is to achieve a state of “symbiosis” with artificial intelligence.
Neuralink still has a long way to go to meet those ambitions. In 2023, the company announced plans to conscript humans into its first-ever research trial to gauge both the benefits and potential health risks of their premier product: a chip implanted directly into the brain.
In January 2024, the chip was inserted into its first patient. On X, formerly known as Twitter, Musk proudly proclaimed the pioneering client was “recovering well” but offered few other details. (The claim itself was not independently verified, as noted by a statement from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.)
