In September, Elon Musk’s brain implant company Neuralink announced the long-awaited news that it would begin recruiting volunteers for a clinical trial to test its device. The device, known as a brain-computer interface (BCI), collects electrical activity from neurons and interprets those signals into commands that control external devices. Although Musk has said he ultimately wants to combine humans and artificial intelligence, Neuralink’s initial purpose is to allow paralyzed people to control a cursor or keyboard using just their thoughts.
Competitor efforts are also underway to connect people’s brains to computers. This year, Neuralink’s competitor Synchron demonstrated the long-term safety of the implant for patients. While other startups tested new devices on humans, new ventures also emerged.
“This year definitely feels like a breakthrough year, but in reality, this is the culmination of decades of research in academia,” said Dr. said Sumner Norman, co-founder and CEO of Forest Neurotech, which was founded in . October. “I think we’re really starting to feel the effects of that exponential growth.”
BCI’s origins date back to the 1960s and 1970s. The first one was tested on laboratory animals. As researchers learn more about the brain, these systems have evolved to become more sophisticated, allowing paralyzed people to move robotic arms, play video games, and communicate with their minds. . Once primarily an academic endeavor, his BCI is now attracting the attention of corporate executives, which have emerged since he founded Neuralink in 2016.
“Science and technology have reached a level of maturity where they can begin to have a real and dramatic impact on the human condition,” said Jacob, CEO and founder of startup Motif Neurotech and professor of engineering at Rice University. Robinson said. “People like Elon Musk are recognizing these inflection points and are putting capital into commercializing them.”
Amid controversy over the treatment of monkey test subjects, Neuralink recently raised an additional $43 million in venture capital, bringing the company’s total raised to $300 million, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. It was over $23 million.
government investment, especially Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and the National Institutes of Health. brain initiative, also helped move the field forward. The latter has poured more than $3 billion into neuroscience research since its first round of funding in 2014.
