Noland Arbaugh, 29, is the first human patient to ever get implanted with Neuralink’s device. The company is developing a brain-computer interface, or a BCI, that aims to help patients with severe paralysis control external technologies using only neural signals. Neuralink’s first product is called Telepathy, Musk said in a post on his social media site X in January.
In the video Wednesday, which was streamed on X, Arbaugh said he became a quadriplegic after suffering a diving accident around eight years ago. He said the surgery to get Neuralink’s implant, which requires patients to remove a portion of their skull to insert electrodes into the brain tissue, was
super easy. He was released from the hospital the next day, he said.Ashley Capoot
It’s not perfect, I would say that we have run into some issues, Arbaugh said.I don’t want people to think that this is the end of the journey, there’s still a lot of work to be done, but it has already changed my life.
This news caught my attention mainly because one of the first things Noland did on his brand new brain-computer interface was to play Civilization VI, a game I also play regularly and for long stretches of time. I didn’t quite expect Neuralink to stick to their plans and get to the stage of human trials, but it’s good that at least one person can enjoy more freedom and connection to the outside world thanks to their efforts.