In his July 2019 white paper “An integrated brain-machine interface platform with thousands of channels“ Musk claims that Neuralink is making progress with creating a “scalable high-bandwidth BMI system” that enables the human brain to “stream full broadband electrophysiology data” and uplink to a network.
The plan is to use a neurosurgical robot (Musk has the patent) to sew a combination of ultra-fine polymer probes and customized high-density electronics into a human brain.
Neuralink also has three other published patent applications, which expand the technology.
What are the medical applications?
The Neuralink technology could be of great benefit to people who are neurologically compromised. The hope is that by installing a chip that replaces a small part of the skull, it could restore eyesight, hearing, or even allow a paralyzed person to walk again.
There is the possibility that any neurological disease can be improved with this specific technology. Neuralink may be on the edge of solving Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, epilepsy, and other illnesses that involve the brain.
