The next human trial for Neuralink is coming soon. It will be the second patient to be given the company's renowned brain chip, but some changes will arrive and set it apart from the first one. It was recently showcased by its founder and CEO, Elon Musk, along with the Neuralink team in their latest update, which looks forward to its trial's progression.
Neuralink's 2nd Human Trials to Bring New Mods
Neuralink shared a live stream on X earlier today, talking about an update about its health tech developments for the brain chip implant that will soon be administered to its second patient for human trials.
First off, the team would like to address the 'air pocket' issue during its first trial with Noland Arbaugh, which was the reason for the implant to have slack on its threads and pushed it away from the brain, said Matthew MacDougall, Neuralink's head neurosurgeon. With this air pocket reduction, they would keep the carbon dioxide levels of the patient's brain at a normal range to avoid it expanding or shrinking.
Next, they would improve the implant's main body with 'better sculpting' to make it sit closer to the brain, avoid a gap, and reduce thread tension.
— Neuralink (@neuralink) July 10, 2024
What to Expect from Neuralink's New Implants?
Neuralink also added that it is planning to insert the threads, a.k.a. the electrodes, deeper into the brain if they budge out again while sitting on the patient's brain. Neuralink also plans to conduct more human trials this year, looking to administer its brain chips to more than two patients in 2024, towards its goal of giving them to thousands of patients in the future.
Neuralink and Its Current Human Trials
For many years, Neuralink has faced delays and setbacks in administering its brain chip implant to a real human being, initially equipping it for animals like chimps and pigs. After facing significant scrutiny from animal rights organizations and experts, it only saw a green light from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2023 to move forward with its human trials.
Nearly a year later, Neuralink announced that it had already implanted its brain chip in a quadriplegic patient, claiming that the surgery was a success and that the patient had already been recovering. Later, Musk and the team revealed that Nolan Arbaugh, its pioneer for brain chip testing, could already control a computer mouse with only his thoughts.
This is a massive milestone for Neuralink, as its previous testing on animals resulted in deaths after several months of having the brain chip. With this success, it was already cleared by the FDA for its next. The latest is facing a delay due to the patient's health concerns standing in their way, but the company's latest update claims new changes are coming for this second test, an improvement from the pioneering experiment.
