Elon Musk's Neuralink has administered its second implant on an unnamed patient as tech-mogul reveals he hopes to plant eight more chips for the remainder of the year.
The medical technology company owned by Musk aims to help people with spinal cord injuries, quadriplegia, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) by administering chips that allow them to control digital devices solely through their thoughts.
In January 2024, Neuralink administered its first implant into a human patient, Nolad Arbaugh, who became paralyzed after a diving accident nearly 10 years ago.
Though Arbaugh experienced complications with his chip, including 85% of its wires becoming detached within weeks, he was reportedly able to participate in his favorite hobbies again like gaming.
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Whilst speaking to MIT research scientist Lex Fridman on his podcast, Musk gave several updates on Neuralink's future plans including a status update on its second implant.
"I don't want to jinx it but it seems to have gone extremely well with the second implant," the CEO shared.
"There's a lot of signal, a lot of electrodes. It's working very well."
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Musk gave little details on who the second patient is, but according to the CEO, they have a similar spinal cord injury to Arbaugh's.
Meanwhile, Arbaugh previously gave an update in May on what his life has been like after receiving Neuralink's implant.
He shared that the implant has helped him 'reconnect with the world, my friends, and my family.'
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"It has given me the ability to do things on my own again without needing my family at all hours of the day and night," he added.
Arbaugh has notably been able to move a computer cursor using only his thoughts, and has been able to play online games like Civilization VI.
"Progress is good and the patient seems to have made a full recovery, with no ill effects that we are aware of," Musk initially shared in February after Arbaugh received his implant per Reuters.
"Patient is able to move a mouse around the screen by just thinking."
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Musk also revealed on Fridman's podcast that Neuralink plans to administer eight more chips this year as part of its continued human trials.
The chip itself is roughly the size of a quarter and features dozens of electrodes that are implanted into the brain and work to pick up electrical signals from neurons, our nerve cells that send messages all over our bodies.
Topics: Elon Musk, Technology, US News, World News, Science
Yasmeen Hamadeh