I've heard of this Neuralink, apparently there was a problem with the first human implant, but its from the same guy who runs x.AI. And Tesla, and SpaceX. They'll probably figure it out.
And from Yahoo Finance, May 13:
Neurotechnology using artificial intelligence is opening up new possibilities in healthcare that previously didn’t exist.
For decades companies and researchers have been exploring implantable devices that interpret signals in the brain and translate them into words or physical commands. The technology is not new, but now, artificial intelligence is accelerating advances, allowing people affected by debilitating diseases to communicate in ways that were physically impossible before.
These devices have been game changers for people like Rodney, a patient living with ALS who had a Stentrode device implanted in his brain. The device, which was developed by Synchron, a neurotech company backed by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and Microsoft’s Bill Gates, contains a tiny electrode that converts brain signals into physical actions, allowing Rodney to type on a keyboard using only his thoughts.
While neurotechnology can be empowering for patients like Rodney, AI could make less invasive neurotech more accessible for everyday consumers and spur the next generation of consumer-facing tech products.
According to Precedence Research, the market for neurotech devices was valued at around $15 billion in 2023, and it's projected to reach over $55 billion by 2032. That's a major reason why Big Tech companies like Meta (META) and Apple (AAPL) are backing research into devices that can decode thoughts and perceptions without requiring invasive surgery.
But as Big Tech moves ahead to build off neurotech advancements in the medical world, experts have cautioned that it could put our most valuable data — the privacy of our thoughts — at risk.
“This is our final fortress of privacy, and we've given up every other aspect of privacy that exists,” said Nita Farahany, a futurist, tech ethicist, and author of “The Battle for Your Brain.”
Big Tech wants to read your mind
Elon Musk’s Neuralink made headlines early this year when the company implanted its first human patient with a brain-computer interface (BCI), though the company said on Thursday it encountered some issues with the implant.The Neuralink implant, which has over 1,000 electrodes and 64 threads, experienced a malfunction after a number of threads retracted from the brain, which decreased the number of effective electrodes. In a blog post, the company said this would not negatively impact how the implant works.
Musk is not the only CEO trying to make neurotechnology a reality. At least 30 companies are currently selling neurotechnology or developing the technology....
....MUCH MORE
As things stand right now the implant approach is too invasive for widespread adoption, one of the reasons the Chinese are exploring other options. If interested see May 11's "China's brain-computer interface technology is catching up to the US. But it envisions a very different use case: cognitive enhancement.".
All of which can be subsumed under the rubric 'Digital Bliology' which Jensen Huang has been going on about for the last couple years. Most recently:
December 2023: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says AI to See ‘Major Second Wave (NVDA)
January 2024: We Are Going To Hear More And More About Digital Biology (NVDA)
February: "Taking Nvidia's Jensen Huang Seriously: Paris-Based 'Bioptimus primed with $35m to unravel disease biology using AI'"'
February: "17 key takeaways from the 2024 J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference"
March: "NVIDIA GTC Financial Analyst Q&A March 19, 2024 Video and Transcript"
April: "RAND: 'Artificial Intelligence and Biotechnology: Risks and Opportunities"
