The Neuralink company reported a malfunction in the operation of a neurochip implanted in the human brain (5 photos)

Back in January of this year, a Neuralink “brain-computer” was implanted into the brain of 29-year-old Nolan Arbo, and until recently it worked properly, allowing the man paralyzed from the shoulders down to lead an almost full life.





The chip was designed to help paralysis patients control external technology using only their minds. After passing all the necessary tests on monkeys, it was decided to implant a similar chip in the human brain.

The operation was a success, and last month Neuralink live-streamed a nine-minute video of Arbo successfully playing video games thanks to the development. The man explained that he was simply imagining the cursor moving where he wanted it to go. In the end, this is what happened in reality.



But just a few weeks later, the company reported that for unknown reasons, "several threads came loose from Arbo's brain, resulting in a reduction in the number of effective electrodes."





29-year-old Noland Arbo was paralyzed 8 years ago and became the first test subject of the Neuralink chip

The fact is that the Neuralink chip contains 1024 electrodes on 64 “threads”, these “threads” are thinner than a human hair and are attached to the human brain. They collect data about the brain's neural activity and movement intention and send the resulting information to the company's computer to decipher and translate thoughts into action.



Now developers are trying to figure out what caused the “threads” to leave Arbo’s brain. There is no direct threat to the man's life and despite the problems, Arbo reportedly uses the Neuralink BCI system for about eight hours a day on weekdays and up to 10 hours on weekends.



Daily hours of BCI use since first session

To solve this problem, the developers modified the recording algorithm to make it more sensitive to signals from the neural ensemble, and improved methods for converting these signals into cursor movements. There is no question of removing the implant from the man’s brain; the experiment will continue.

Doctors estimate that 180,000 Americans are quadriplegic, and each year about 18,000 more suffer from paralyzing spinal cord injury. The company will continue to work on creating a stable working version of the chip to make life easier for people with disabilities.