Elon Musk announced Monday his neurotechnology startup Neuralink inserted its first implant into a human subject.
“The first human received an implant from Neuralink yesterday and is recovering well. Initial results show promising neuron spike detection,” Musk said.
The first human received an implant from @Neuralink yesterday and is recovering well.
Initial results show promising neuron spike detection.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 29, 2024
“The first Neuralink product is called Telepathy,” Musk said.
“Enables control of your phone or computer, and through them almost any device, just by thinking. Initial users will be those who have lost the use of their limbs. Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a speed typist or auctioneer. That is the goal,” he continued.
Enables control of your phone or computer, and through them almost any device, just by thinking.
Initial users will be those who have lost the use of their limbs.
Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a speed typist or auctioneer. That is the goal.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 30, 2024
The New York Post reports:
The US Food and Drug Administration last year greenlit human trials of the company’s brain chips after Neuralink performed hundreds of tests on pigs, sheep and monkeys — and was called out for animal abuse by animal rights groups in the process.
ADVERTISEMENT“The last two years have been all about focus on building a human-ready product,” Neuralink co-founder DJ Seo told Bloomberg News in November. “It’s time to help an actual human being.”
The brain chip — which has 1,000 electrodes — is meant to allow people to wirelessly perform computer functions by just thinking of what they’d like to do via a “think-and-click” mechanism.
Last month the company said it was looking for quadriplegics under 40 years old to participate in the human trials. It also said a surgeon would remove part of the test patient’s skull before a 7-foot-tall robot named R1 would take over to implant 64 threads lined with electrodes into their brain.
The electrodes are programmed to gather data about the brain, including neural activity attached to movement intention. These neural signals recorded by the electrodes would then be sent back to Neuralink computers for decoding.
There were a variety of reactions to Elon Musk’s announcement:
Ah yes, this definitely seems like a good thing and not at all sinister for the course humanity 🙂 https://t.co/hpcpiAL66U
— Lauren Southern (@Lauren_Southern) January 30, 2024
Congratulations to @neuralink on the first human to receive the Neuralink implant. This is huge news, it will change people’s lives. Excited to see the progress they will make. @elonmusk https://t.co/l9E9vE9hO9 pic.twitter.com/GKSQKEoFjn
— Kerri Gray (@kerrikgray) January 30, 2024
Elon Musk announces first human implanted with Neuralink brain-chip
Another step on the road to transhumanism
I’m sure this will end well…. pic.twitter.com/AmqMkTcQKZ
— Vision4theBlind (@Vision4theBlind) January 30, 2024
This definitely scares me… I’m really curious what the use case will end up being for this.
— Joey Mannarino (@JoeyMannarinoUS) January 29, 2024
I’m Very Mixed About This.
It Can Have Life Changing Effects On People.
But, If Abused!!!!— John Basham (@JohnBasham) January 29, 2024
This risk outweighs the benefit with this tech.
This is transhumanism. https://t.co/kDM612Aztc— Krista Monroe (@MsKristaMonroe) January 30, 2024
Transhumanism has arrived . I have been warning you to read The Book of Revelation…
pic.twitter.com/zXNdAPTOgP
—
The road to hell is paved with good intentions
— American Viking
(@RedheadRory1) January 29, 2024
The slippery slope that rightfully frightens many people is transhumanism.
Brain chip implant technology has been compared to the ‘Mark of the Beast.’
“The promise of transhumanism is the exact same promise the serpent gave to Eve in the Garden. Godlike intelligence & eternal life. This was the first deception used to lure mankind away from God, & it’ll likely be the final deception used to lead millions to hell for eternity,” Sovereign Brah writes.
WATCH:
The promise of transhumanism is the exact same promise the serpent gave to Eve in the Garden.
Godlike intelligence & eternal life.
This was the first deception used to lure mankind away from God, & it’ll likely be the final deception used to lead millions to hell for eternity. pic.twitter.com/ezo6BaTFEt
— SOVEREIGN BRAH
(@sovereignbrah) March 19, 2023
“The temptations of transhumanism will exceed anything seen before in human history. Combine this with the ability to attain godlike intelligence and knowledge by merging one’s mind with AI… Yeah. Millions will turn their backs on God,” Sovereign Brah wrote in another post.
The temptations of transhumanism will exceed anything seen before in human history.
Combine this with the ability to attain godlike intelligence and knowledge by merging one’s mind with AI…
Yeah.
Millions will turn their backs on God. pic.twitter.com/LAbP8FidzS
— SOVEREIGN BRAH
In addition to the transhumanism slippery slope, Neuralink has faced criticism for its safety protocols.
Per Reuters:
The company has faced calls for scrutiny regarding its safety protocols. Reuters reported earlier this month that the company was fined for violating U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) rules regarding the movement of hazardous materials.
The company was valued at about $5 billion last June, but four lawmakers in late November asked the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to investigate whether Musk had misled investors about the safety of its technology after veterinary records showed problems with the implants on monkeys included paralysis, seizures and brain swelling.
Musk wrote in a social media post on Sept. 10 that “no monkey has died as a result of a Neuralink implant.” He added that the company chose “terminal” monkeys to minimize risk to healthy ones.
This is a Guest Post from our friends over at 100 Percent Fed Up.
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