When thinking about the people changing the world as we know it, one name definitely makes the list – Elon Musk. He is already gracing the pages of history by sending rockets to space and becoming the biggest name in the electric vehicles industry, but he has also come up with his newest passion project – Neuralink, the company that is developing an implant for the brain that will ‘link’ the human brain with computers.
Musk’s primary goal for the innovation is to help those with neurological disorders. Anyone with brain and spinal cord injuries can get the implant installed and have their sensory and movement functions restored. This is only the initial vision, with the plan being to completely change the way humans interact with others and with the world.
Here’s a look at how the brain works, how it can be interfaced with, and finally engineered to become something greater than its original form through Neuralink and what may follow it in the years to come.
How does the brain work?
Neurons – the cells that comprise the brain – send and receive information through links called synapses, and there are 86 million of them in a single human brain. There are neurons in the brain that carry information about everything we see, feel, touch, or think, and the different types of neurons can be categorised into three broad categories – dendrites (for receiving signals), somas (for computing signals) and axons (for sending signals). It’s interesting how these categories of neurons sound like the input, processing and output systems of a computer, and that is indeed no coincidence. In the presence of action potentials, the synapses release special chemicals called neurotransmitters, which are used by the neurons to communicate with each other and with the rest of the body. The electrical signals generated by neurons can be recorded by placing electrodes in close proximity to them.
Neuralink is building a robot that can be used by neurosurgeons to surgically implant the Link interface into a human brain. Musk says the procedure, although complex, will take only a few hours, and the receiver can actually leave the hospital the same day.
Interfacing with the brain
Creating a functional man-machine interface within the human brain sounds like the stuff of science fiction, but Neuralink is out to turn that fantasy into a reality. The company is creating a neural implant (dubbed the Link) that, to put it very simply, will help a human control computers or mobile devices directly using their brain.
The Link implant will consist of micron-scale threads that are inserted into areas of the brain that control movements that are connected to the implant. The device is completely sealed, and it can also be charged wirelessly using a compact inductive charger. However, because of the extremely fine and flexible nature of the implant’s threads, it cannot be installed using human hands. To overcome this challenge, Neuralink is building a robot that can be used by neurosurgeons to surgically implant the Link interface into a human brain. Musk says the procedure, although complex, will take only a few hours, and the receiver can actually leave the hospital the same day. He even makes the bold claim that with the machine, the implantation procedure could be as easy as LASIK ocular surgeries. It has been claimed that even with the implant, a person would feel completely normal without feeling any physical abnormalities that can be caused by the presence of a coin-sized chip and a network of conductive threads inside their skull. In fact, even if users choose to have the Link unit removed for some reason, they can go on to be completely happy and healthy. The Link has not yet received the official approval of the FDA, but Neuralink is already preparing for clinical trials on humans.
Speaking of interfacing, there is, of course, an app that can be controlled by the brain. The Neuralink app can be used to control the Link unit, and provide support for the generation of text and directional input (think of it like having a keyboard and a mouse/touchpad built into your brain, which can be operated at the speed of thought). The app guides the users through exercises that teach the user to control their device, which is paired with the phone or tablet using Bluetooth. The app is available only for iOS devices right now, but support for other platforms is due to show up eventually.
Engineering with the brain
Neuralink initially wants to grant the freedom of independent movement to those who are paralyzed or have brain or spinal cord injuries, and provide them with the ability to mentally control computers and mobile devices. Link can enable speech synthesis and text communications for those in need, and also enable them to express themselves creatively through media such as photography and art. If Musk’s vision is properly translated into reality, it can indeed bring about a great deal of positive changes to human lives, perhaps changing them for the better irrevocably and bringing the human race one step closer toward the technological singularity.
While all of this might seem like it’s far-fetched or almost impossible, substantial progress has already been made in this field. Brain Computer Interfaces (BCI) have already been used as a method for the restoration of sensation and mobility to a patient as recently as early 2020. During one of the presentations, it was shown how data was being collected in real time from the brain of a pig that was implanted with an early prototype of Link. The world has also seen a video of a Link-implanted monkey playing the classic video game ‘Pong’ with just its mind.
While medical solutions are the initial goal for Neuralink’s vision, the future is not restricted to that particular field. The company believes that going forward, Link can actually save memories that can be viewed later (like the Gallery app on a phone, or a photo album). As much as it sounds like an episode from Black Mirror right now, as more areas of the brain are mapped and understood (which is something Link can actually help with), such a vision of the future may not be very far away.
The company believes that going forward, Link can actually save memories that can be viewed later (like the Gallery app on a phone, or a photo album). As much as it sounds like an episode from Black Mirror right now, as more areas of the brain are mapped and understood (which is something Link can actually help with), such a vision of the future may not be very far away.
This brings another paradigm into play – the rise of AI and super-intelligent computers is a future that everyone has accepted is coming in our lifetimes, even if it is still a few decades away. According to Musk, even the most basic version of that future is one where humans would be left behind on their own, but melding human minds with computer systems like Link can help humans become a central part of it by being able to keep up and coexisting with AIs. However, in a darker and dystopian version of the same future, humans may actually not be able to control or keep up with AIs, who may end up controlling human minds and actions instead.
Neuralink is now recruiting coordinators for their clinical trials, who will be responsible for building the teams of people who will run and oversee the trials, as well as be liaisons with the trial regulators. Elon Musk believes that when more and more people get behind driving a certain change, the process of change is always accelerated.
With everything being said, the science behind Link is still being developed, and a great many factors – how Link works, how the brain processes input from Link, the long-term effects of having such an implant, and the possible rejection of the implant by the body – are yet to be understood and tested. In addition, many of the technological innovations that are required for the vision of Link to become a reality are still unborn or in their early stages. However, even with all of these challenges to overcome, it is undeniable that Link promises to be a tremendous feat of technology, and if Neuralink succeeds, it would definitely make for an extremely exciting future.
