The tech entrepreneur Elon Musk on Friday showed off a pig whose brain he says has been implanted with a small computer. In July 2019, Neuralink unveiled a design that involved implanting tiny electrode “threads” into the brain as well as another device behind the ear. The new device Musk described Friday is much smaller, does not require the visible ear device, and would be implanted in the brain by a surgical robot under local anesthesia. The device is removable, Musk said, and he showed off another pig, Dorothy, whom he claimed had had one of the devices implanted and subsequently removed. Neuroscientists have also conducted brain implant trials with a small number of people who have lost control of bodily functions due to spinal cord injuries or neurological conditions such as strokes.

Source: The Guardian August 29, 2020 01:18 UTC