Brain-Computer Interface

Abstract

Launched in 2017 to widespread publicity due to the involvement of tech magnate and outspoken futurist Elon Musk, Neuralink Corp. aims to develop an advanced brain-computer interface (BCI) platform capable of assisting in the treatment of serious neurological conditions with longer-term goals of approaching transhumanism through nonmedical human enhancement to enable human-machine “symbiosis with artificial intelligence.” The first published description of a complete prototype Neuralink system, detailed by Muskin the company's only white paper to date, describes a closed-loop, invasive BCI architecture with an unprecedented magnitude of addressable electrodes. Invasive BCI systems require surgical implantation to allow for directly targeted capture and/or stimulation of neural spiking activity in functionally associated clusters of neurons beneath the surface of the cortex.