Revolutionary Neuralink Device Empowers Paralyzed Patients: Elon Musk Reports Success with Second Implant

Neuralink has successfully implemented its device designed to enable paralyzed patients to use digital tools to think for themselves in a second patient, according to the startup’s owner, Elon Musk.

Neuralink is testing its device, which aims to help people with spinal cord injuries.

The device allowed the first patient to play video games, browse the internet, post on social media and move the cursor on his laptop.

Musk, in comments made in a podcast released Friday that lasted more than eight hours, did not provide many details about the second participant other than to say that the person had a spinal cord injury like the first patient, who was paralyzed in her diving accident. Musk said 400 of the implanted electrodes in the second patient’s brain are working. Neuralink says on its website that its implant uses 1,024 electrodes.

“I don’t want to jinx it, but it looks like it went really well with the second implant,” Musk told podcast host Lex Fridman. “There are a lot of signals, a lot of electrodes. It works really well.”

Musk did not reveal when Neuralink performed the surgery on the second patient. Musk said he expects Neuralink to give the implants to eight more patients this year as part of its clinical trials.

The first patient, Noland Arbaugh, was interviewed on the podcast, along with three Neuralink executives, who provided details on how the implant surgery and robot work.

Before Arbaugh got his implant in January, he used a computer by using a stick in his mouth to tap on a tablet screen. Arbaugh said with the implant he can now just imagine anything that happens on the computer screen, and the device that makes it happen.

He said the device gave him a modicum of independence and reduced his dependence on caregivers.

Arbaugh initially had problems after his surgery when the tiny wires on his implant retracted, leading to a sharp drop in electrodes that could measure brain signals. Reuters reported that Neuralink was aware of this issue from their animal testing.

Neuralink said it restored the implant’s ability to monitor Arbaugh’s brain signals by making changes that included changing its algorithm to be more sensitive. Arbaugh bettered his previous world record for how fast he can control a cursor with just thoughts “with only about 10, 15% of the electronics working,” Musk said on the podcast.

Musk also said he had spoken to Republican candidate Donald Trump, who he supported in the US presidential race, about creating a commission aimed at improving “government efficiency” by ‘ reduce business management, and that he would be willing to participate.

Musk said, in his opinion, that US regulations make innovation difficult.