Noland Arbaugh, the first patient of Elon Musk’s Neuralink, recently made his public debut. Arbaugh’s passion for playing Civilization VI was abruptly halted due to a diving accident that resulted in the dislocation of two vertebrae in his cervical spinal cord, rendering him paralyzed from the shoulders down.
When the 29-year-old American is confined to his wheelchair, he relies completely on his parents for care. They have to regularly shift his weight every few hours to prevent pressure sores from prolonged sitting in the same position.
In addition to that, quadriplegics had to use a specialized assistive device called a mouth stick to move a cursor on a display.
After undergoing a brain chip implant by Musk’s Neuralink, he became the first human to gain the remarkable ability to control a computer with his mind.
Arbaugh claimed that the first thing he did was stay up all night until 6 a.m., engrossed in playing Sid Meier’s captivating strategy game.
“I can now simply relax in bed and play to my heart’s content,” he shared in a video testimonial uploaded by Neuralink to their official channel on Wednesday. “To be honest, the only limitation I faced was having to wait for the implant to recharge after using up all of its power.”
If that is indeed true, it would signify a significant milestone for Musk’s company.
Just a few years back, Neuralink made waves by demonstrating audio beeps generated from brain signals obtained from pigs with implanted chips.
Neuralink has often been seen as a trailing player in the emerging field of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs). Its two main rivals, Blackrock Microsystems and Synchron, have already demonstrated what seem to be comparable achievements with their technology.
‘It was like using the Force’
It has been a busy week for Musk’s business empire, with several notable developments. This includes the successful third test launch of his Starship rocket and the highly acclaimed release of version 12.3 of Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software, which has received widespread praise from many owners in the United States.
“It’s been quite a week,” agreed the entrepreneur on Wednesday.
Until now, the identity of the patient that Musk had mentioned previously remained unknown to the public. It was unclear whether the claims of success surrounding the procedure could be trusted, as well as whether any complications had arisen as a result.
Patient testimonial videos represent a significant shift in communication from Musk’s concise tweets about X.
Can we believe Neuralink’s claims?
While Neuralink’s claims gain more credibility through such testimony, it is important to note that the company maintains complete control over all the information you perceive and hear.
In some cases, the video seems to abruptly cut away.
The brief nine-minute cannot be compared to published peer-reviewed research or traditional media briefings. In those formats, executives respond to questions on the spot without the ability to edit, crop, or alter their responses afterwards.
In January, Musk shared a video showcasing Tesla’s Optimus, a humanoid robot that appeared to be folding laundry effortlessly.
During the observation, keen-eyed viewers were quick to notice a fleeting glimpse of a human hand at the periphery of the scene, indicating that the operator was indeed in command of the movements.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, acknowledged that his robot is currently unable to independently complete the task.
In the health industry, it is uncommon for a privately-held company like Neuralink to not have published any peer-reviewed research studies.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given its green light for the company to proceed with its first human trial, marking a significant seal of approval.
Arbaugh, the patient, expressed that although he has encountered some challenges with the brain chip implanted in his head, he is already excited about Halloween. He has chosen to dress up as Professor X, the iconic telepath from Marvel’s beloved superhero comics, who is known for being wheelchair-bound.
He expressed his enthusiasm, saying, “We are constantly acquiring new knowledge every day.”
