I checked a few times to make sure this was real, but Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk is apparently at it again. This time, the billionaire entrepreneur and inventor is using pigs with computer chips in their brains to unveil a device that pairs artificial intelligence and human brains.
The debut of Neuralink last week “showcased pigs with computer chips in their brains” and “involved displaying real-time neural signals from one of the pigs, whom Musk named Gertrude,” according to a couple of news reports.
Other than making me squeamish thinking about the process of and reasons behind embedding humans with computer chips, I tried to think about whether this is truly something people want and need. Then again, who was pining for electric cars 25 years ago, right?
Here’s more about Neuralink:
Musk said the process for installing a Neuralink in a human brain would be an hourlong operation that is no more invasive than LASIK eye surgery, inserting a coin-sized device into the skull that would leave a tiny scar after the electrodes are inserted in the brain.
He likened the technology to being essentially a “Fitbit in your skull.”
While the ambitious project has been under wraps since its announcement in 2016, Musk said the device could help fight memory loss, blindness and paralysis, among other medical conditions.
He added that a mainstream audience likely would not be able to use a Neuralink device electively for more than a decade.
“There will be ethical and safety issues to work through, and for a long time, it’s likely that you’ll have to have a real medical need to access this technology,” he said.
Musk also said Friday that the technology had received “Breakthrough Device” designation from the Food and Drug Administration, according to Forbes.
While mainstream use of the device likely is years away, Musk answered several questions about its potential, saying a person could summon their self-driving car just by thinking about it.
The device has also been tested on at least 19 different animals and has a success rate of around 87 percent.
I’m not sure when we’ll see computer-chipped pigs roaming the office hallways or inside the IT server room but I couldn’t help but combine Musk’s latest effort with the idea of his successful SpaceX launch and think of the classic Muppets recurring skit, “Pigs in Space.” Was that just me?
Do you think Musk’s newest invention will eventually have mainstream uses—and what could it change about the AV integration space? If we’re all walking around with embedded computer chips, could that streamline processes by allowing office-bound workers to pair up with those in the field?
