Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain implant company, announced Tuesday that it is launching a study to test the implant for a modern application: allowing a person to control a robotic arm with just their thoughts. “We are pleased to announce the approval and initiation of a new feasibility trial to extend BCI control with the N1 implant to an experimental assistive robotic arm,” Neuralink said in post on X Musk’s social media platform.
BCI, or brain-computer interface, is a system that allows a person to directly control external devices using brain waves. It works by reading and decoding intended motor signals from neurons. Neuralink’s BCI involves a coin-sized device called the N1, which is surgically implanted into the brain by a robot. The company is currently assessing the safety of your BCIas well as its ability to control a computer in people with paralysis.
Carrying a computer or prosthetic hand is not a modern feat for BCI. IN 2008a team led by Andrew Schwartz of the University of Pittsburgh showed that a monkey could control a robotic arm to feed itself using signals from its brain. The researchers then moved on to the volunteers. In 2012 study published in the magazine Naturetwo people paralyzed by a stroke were able to guide a robotic arm to reach and grab objects just by thinking about it. One of them was able to serve herself coffee for the first time in 14 years. IN another study from 2016man with BCI regained his sense of touch thanks to a robotic arm.
The BCIs used in these studies were cumbersome setups that required running a cable from the study participants’ heads to a computer that decodes brain signals. The Neuralink system, however, is wireless.
Earlier this year on social media, Neuralink showed that its BCI could be used to control a computer cursor. In video on xStudy participant Noland Arbaugh was shown using a Neuralink device to play chess and other computer games. Arbaugh, who became a quadriplegic in 2016 after a swimming accident, spoke to WIRED earlier this year about how the implant gave him a sense of independence.
In January, Arbaugh underwent brain surgery to receive a Neuralink implant, but a few weeks later the device began malfunctioning. The implant consists of 64 gaunt, pliant wire threads that penetrate the brain tissue. Each strand contains 16 electrodes that collect neural signals. In a blog post from May, Neuralink claimed that several threads backed out of Arbaugh’s brain, causing him to momentarily lose control of the cursor. Neuralink was able to restore control to Arbaugh by modifying the brain recording algorithm to be more sensitive and changing the way it translates neural signals into cursor movements.