Elon Musk’s company will implant a Neuralink chip in the brain of a second volunteer

American billionaire Elon Musk’s company Neuralink received official permission from US medical authorities to implant an implant in the brain of a second volunteer during testing of a new technology. At the same time, the company must take into account the shortcomings that emerged during the first operation. The second operation is planned for June, and by the end of the year Neuralink hopes to have already completed 10 such operations.

Neuralink’s invention is a coin-sized microcomputer that is implanted into a person’s brain. It contains more than a thousand electrodes, connects to the brain with wires, each 10 times thinner than a human hair, and can control about a thousand neurons. Research is conducted on people paralyzed due to injury or neurological disease. If the tests are successful, the chip should restore their ability to move or interact with computers at will.

The first Neuralink chip was implanted in February of this year. The patient is a 29-year-old American man who was completely paralyzed after an accident. The company further said that the patient learned “with the power of thought” to control the computer mouse cursor on the screen and play online chess. However, in early May, the implant began to work worse. The company said some of the ultra-thin wires had become dislodged and lost connection with the brain. In the next patient, they plan to install the implant deeper to avoid such complications.

More than a thousand paralyzed volunteers have already signed up to participate in the Neuralink trial.