Neuralink Receives Canadian Approval For Brain Chip Trial

Neuralink, the brain chip startup founded by Elon Musk, says it has received approval to launch its first clinical trial in Canada for a device designed to give paralysed individuals the ability to use digital devices simply by thinking. Reuters reports: [T]he Canadian study aims to assess the safety and initial functionality of its implant which enables people with quadriplegia, or paralysis of all four limbs, to control external devices with their thoughts. Canada's University Health Network hospital said in a separate statement that its Toronto facility had been selected to perform the complex neurosurgical procedure. Neuralink has successfully implanted the device in two patients in the United States. One of the patients has been using it to play video games and learn how to design 3D objects.

Memory implants

[flyingfsck]

It would also be great if memory implants would be possible one day

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[Rei]

There's no need for memory "implants" if you can increase the bandwidth between the brain and the outside world. Memory can be external; only the communication needs to be internal. And if you have high bandwidth communications, then basically the whole internet is accessible in your thoughts, as are the communicated thoughts of others. The bandwidth between a person's brain and external sources of information or the brains of others is immensely lower than the brain's internal bandwidth. Physical commu

Re:

[Revek]

A prelude to some type of control or manipulation of people. Just look at who owns it.

Cue the people...

[Rei]

... hating on giving paralyzed people control of their lives again, just because the guy who owns the company is an arse.

Also cue the Dunning-Kruger people thinking that the know more than the medical regulatory boards of multiple countries (whose leadership also think Musk is an arse) about safety or animal welfare [reuters.com] because they read some clickbait article and don't even understand what testing (incl. deliberately fatal) is imposed on medical device firms by regulatory bodies.

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[gweihir]

The guy who owns that company is an epic-level asshole. That does not mean everything people working for him do is bad.

However, a word of caution: Brain implants that can be used long-term or permanently are _very_ far away.

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[Rei]

You do know what the word "cue" means, right? And yes, they showed up [slashdot.org], like clockwork.

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[bjoast]

just because the guy who owns the company is an arse

He is not.

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[HiThere]

The problem is, as soon as the company loses interest in the device, they'll discontinue it. Then a dead battery leaves you paralyzed again, but without a working support system.

Make sure you get the extended warranty

[DrXym]

You don't want this shit in your head if whatever software that controls it is shut down because Elon had a tantrum.

Re:

[colonslash]

You do if you're paralyzed and this lets you walk, or blind and this lets you see...

Can you name an instance where Elon shut down something a user owned? All I see is him enabling a clean energy revolution, making us a spacefaring species, and augmenting people to overcome disabilities.

Your political prejudice is distasteful.

Who wants to sign up for the beta test?

[fjo3]

I would love to see this available to help the handicapped and the elderly. This technology has a million ways it could go wrong, but it also offers immense potential for the future of human civilization. And please, there is little to no reason to obsess about the fact that this has been facilitated (at least to some degree - it's debatable) by Trump's new husband. Elmo will get dumped as soon as Trump sees a new shiny object - Trump's attention span is about as long as a toddler's - a toddler that is hopp

Great White Borg

[awwshit]

Welcome to the Great White Borg! Chips are the best, eh.