Neuralink, the brainchild of tech visionary Elon Musk. It captured the world’s attention by promising to fill the gap between human brains and technology. Imagine you controlling your smartphone, laptop, or any other device with your thoughts. It increases your abilities of thinking. Neuralink might be the key to making these science fiction dreams a reality. In this blog post, we’ll unravel the story of Neuralink, from its early inspirations to groundbreaking experiments and untapped potential.
The Vision of Neuralink
Neuralink aims to speak directly with the brain to expand human capabilities. This tiny implanted device works as a control system of mind, allowing people to use their thoughts to manipulate their bodies and other objects. The main objective of Neuralink is to boost the level of life for those with a range of neurological disorders, particularly spinal cord injuries, paralysis, and other conditions affecting motor functions. By establishing neuronal connectivity, Neuralink gives these patients hope for a healthier and more independent life.
Early Experiments and Breakthroughs
The First Experiment: “Pager” the Monkey
The first monkey used in Elon Musk’s team’s experiment received the nickname Pager. Initially, Pager was taught how to use a joystick to teach him to play a game called “Pong,” which is similar to table tennis, in exchange for banana juice. The group successfully captured the brain activity connected to these movements. Once the neurological patterns were clarified, the joystick was removed, allowing Pager to use the Neuralink implant to control the game with his thoughts. This important milestone showed how Neuralink could be used to turn ideas into actions.
Pioneering Initiatives for Brain-Machine Interfaces
Even if it is not the first business researching brain-machine interfaces, Neuralink has come a long way from its forerunners, Precision, BrainCo, and Synchron. While several of these businesses have conducted similar research, none has come close to Neuralink’s degree of creativity and integration.
The Neuralink device is a tiny implant that resembles a coin. It is made to interact with the brain’s neurons effortlessly, effectively replacing destroyed neurons and regaining function. Neuralink stands apart from previous attempts in the industry thanks to its cutting-edge technology.
Historical Roots and Technological Evolution
Neuralink’s concept which was originated from research done at Utah Array University in 1992. Early ideas included 100-needle silicon squares that were supposed to control neurons. Unfortunately, this method was impossible due to the enormous quantity of neurons (86 billion) found in the human brain. But Elon Musk Recognized for his audacious projects with Tesla and SpaceX, Elon Musk kept his belief in the viability of brain-machine interfaces. His idea resulted in the development of Neuralink, a tiny coin-shaped gadget that can communicate with brain neurons.
History of Neuralink and Its Prospects
Max Hodak and Elon Musk led the founding of Neuralink. Musk kept the business moving forward despite the internal strife that resulted in Hodak’s exit, financing $363 million for additional R&D (research and development).
First, the BCI system identifies brain activities by using electrodes. These electrodes can be implanted into the brain or applied to the scalp. Next, the signals are strengthened and cleaned up to make them more understandable to the system. This is sifting through the signals to remove any noise and find meaningful patterns. The technology searches for particular characteristics in brain impulses that indicate distinct intentions or thoughts. These functions aid in the BCI’s comprehension of the user’s intended actions, such as directing a robotic arm or moving a cursor. The system recognizes the brain signals as patterns, and it associates those patterns with particular activities. After that, the interpreted commands are utilized to operate external devices, such as dragging a pointer over.
The four primary parts of Neuralink are the hardware, chips, threads, and battery. The implanted device connects with brain neurons to regulate injured parts of the skull. Highly engineered equipment with cameras and sensors is used in the insertion procedure. It is similar to a swing machine. The implanting equipment uses a tungsten-rhenium alloy special needle and scans the patient’s skull. The entire process only takes five to six hours to complete, with the creativity and efficiency of Neuralink’s methodology. The Neuralink surgery is expected to cost approximately $10,500 with the cost of different Tests, components, and labour. It is expected that insurance companies will be billed $40,000 for each surgery because of the safety issue. However, this figure may change in real terms based on the cost of components, procedures, and monitoring.
Neuralink is a ground-breaking innovation that creates brain-machine interactions. Neuralink is not just an idea of the human mind, it shows the power of thinking. The main goal or purpose of Neuralink is to make science fiction into reality. The next stage in Neuralink’s historic journey is highly Futuristic which shows the power of technology and thinking.
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Writer,
Arnab Chakraborty
Intern, Content Writing Department
YSSE