Neuralink : The future of technology and medical science we need to know

What is Neuralink?

Neuralink is a company that specializes on building BCI (Brain-Computer Interface) devices. It was founded by Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla Motors and SpaceX. Neuralink is

Neuralink

Elon Musk's 6th Company after OpenAI. It was founded in 2016 and was publicly reported on March 2017. The company is focusing on building sophisticated BCI devices which will enable the brain to communicate with the computer using modern Artificial Intelligence. The estimated value of the company currently is said to be $500 million according to Pitchbook as of mid 2020.    

What is The Link? And how will it work?

Neuralink is aiming to establish successful communication between the brain and the computer using a device, The Link. The Link is a coin sized complex device that helps in detecting brain activity by its electrode which catches the electromagnetic waves and

The Link

sends it from our brain to the computer. Our brain has 86 Million Neurons. Each of these neurons send and receive information across the brain. The Neurons have synapses between themselves and the exchange of information between them is carried by chemicals known as neurotransmitters. When these neurotransmitters comes in contact with the receivers of the dendrite of another neuron an action potential is triggered and on receiving the right combination of spatiotemporal synaptic input currents flow through the neurons that release out electromagnetic waves. The Link detects these electromagnetic waves and transmits them to the computers. The Link has precisely 1024 electrodes as of now which will increase in number in future advancements. These electrodes are made of gold for precise detection of electromagnetic waves. The Link also needs to be charged as we charge other gadgets like our mobile phones, laptops, etc. But this device will be inductively charged. 

Inductive Charging of The Link

The company claims a whole night charge of the device will ensure a whole day of productivity. There is a Neuralink app made by the company to help integrate your brain and help develop the required skills. 

What will The Link do?

We humans have two systems in our brain - The Limbic System and The Cortex. The Limbic system is responsible of our emotions and survival instincts whereas The Cortex is responsible for critical thinking, Problem solving and much more. It is were our consciousness is located. The Link makes an addition to this systems. What we humans

Link Internals

perform, from walking to complex thinking are because of different bandwidth of waves from our neurons. And what differs us from everybody is because of these bandwidth, it is differently emitted in everyone. The link will aid this bandwidth issue and thus will make us even more productive than we could actually think ourselves to be. Musk also states that

Neurons inside the brain

the device can store memories so that later we can review them. As with age our retention power decreases The Link will help us remember things. Further more, what we have seen in Science Fiction movies will gradually become reality. This incredible device would also allow us to control our smartphones, laptops, smartwatch, even smart devices as to say every IoT device around us without even touching them. Just imagine you can sit in your sofa and turn the TV on, switch on the fan, increase the volume, change movies and TV shows just by sitting in one place and thinking about them!!!

Why is The Link different and much more anticipated than other BCI devices?

Brain-Computer Interface devices are around for decades but The Link is totally different and successfully makes its place at the top. As of now the most successful BCI device is The Utah Array. A partially-invasive Device which enables paralyzed individuals to control

Utah Array

devices. Utah Array is installed in humans by complex brain surgery where the device uses electrodes that are 800 times thicker than the electrodes on The Link. Utah Array has 100 electrodes which are nearly 10 times lesser than the ones on The Link. The Utah Array doesn't only have lesser capabilities as compared to The Link but it is also a potential threat to the brain. Our brain moves every second as we breathe. The thick electrodes installed in the brain can result in severe rupture inside the brain. Because there are many blood vessels inside the Brain, piercing thick electrodes can cause internal bleeding that will cause seizure and often death. And this makes The Link separate than any other device. The extremely thin electrodes that are pierced in your skull will have negligible complications are compared to earlier BCI devices. So, there would be no problem if you walk. run, jump, swim and do anything. This device also a major advancement over other devices as this is an invasive device, meaning this device will be implanted into your skull. So it would not only be capable of capturing more precise electromagnetic waves for accurate functions but also no one would know if you are having The Link installed in your head. The device will be able to download and store data so just think if you are being said to go to New York and you haven't been there for a single time, the map of New York can be downloaded in The Link and you will be able to move across the city as if you were a common resident of the place knowing all about every corner of the city.  

How will The Link be implanted?

The Link will be implanted by surgery but such a minute surgery which would require accurate placement and high precision which is very difficult by human hands so Neuralink

Robot to perform surgery for The Link

has also created a significant robot which will carry on the process safely. The robot will plant the device safely inside the skull by a single 8mm skull opening. It will accurately insert the electrodes at the right places to prevent it from causing any injury to the blood vessels. The surgery will be completed in almost 12 hours and the patient will be released from the hospital on the same day of admit as said by Elon Musk. The electrodes in The Link are just 5 microns thick which means it is 10 times thinner than the human hair. So

Wires of The Link are 5 micron thick

you'll have no tension of hemorrhage or seizures. In the initial phases The Link will be quite expensive to implant but with future advancements the prices will gradually come down as said by the company. Elon Musk said that the price of surgery will gradually decrease and one can have the surgery at just the price of LASIK eye surgery. So, as estimated the cost will be between $2000 - $3000, much lesser than other BCI devices in the market.

For whom The Link is being made?

Musk clearly states that The Link is made for the patients having neurological disorder such as Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimer's, insomnia, depression, etc. But he also adds that it can be taken by any person. The device will also be a paralyzed person's second chance to live life. The persons who have sight disorder, hearing impairment, walking problems and much more the device will successfully help them. The Link will make successful communication between different neurons possible as this is the major reason for paralysis. A paralyzed patient does not have some part of his brain active thus making him unable to talk, walk, hear, see, etc., this will be cured by The Link. Further, Musk also points out that he fears the possibility of human destruction by AI. This could be possible if AI becomes more and more advance in the future. If AI attends extreme knowledge and becomes independent of human interaction then this possibility will be significant. Musk wants to end such possibility by developing a symbiotic relationship between the machine and the human where they have to survive together or else the death of one will result in destruction of the another as well. This will be established by The Link. 

What are the advancements made this far on The Link?

The Link is tested on the pigs, rats and monkeys. And the results are positive so far. The trails on pig clearly shows that The Link detects signals when of the pig attempts to eat and the snout performs any activity. An another test on them was conducted, the pig was

Trials on Pig

made to walk and The Link predicted its limb position, so far the results were almost accurate but the company claims that the results would be much more precise by using machine learning. Trails on monkeys were also conducted where a monkey was able to

Monkey Playing Video Game

play video game by only his mind. The monkey plays Ping Pong with its mind. This is literally outstanding as of now. Imagine what humans can do with if a monkey was able to successfully play video game. Human Trials have not yet started but should start in near
future with approval from FDA (Food and Drug Administration).

Concerns which are surrounding around The Link?

The Link is a device administering connectivity through Bluetooth and Internet. And the more concerns are on the vulnerabilities of the device to potential hackers. People are asking questions as if hackers are able to get hold of your thoughts and imaginations there would be great problems for the person. With hackers posing a concerning threat whereas there are already so much around the internet of how hackers are able to access

AI versus Humanity 

even most of the encrypted and secure files even the ones of the government and the big tech companies. These news are capable enough to make us think again and again of the security on The Link. Many neuroscientists out there are already saying about the potentiality of hacking and they are also pointing that the device would not be able to cure Parkinson's Disease and Alzheimer's. So, while this is out we will still need neuroscientists and that is sure enough. Musk said to this concern that The Link will be accompanied with advanced cryptography and security so that such situation are avoided.

Conclusion

The Link is no doubt one of the wonderful technologies of the 21st Century. It is the technology of the future and a stepping milestone for the human civilization. Despite of the concerns The Link is said to be a major advancement in the Medical Industry and it would certainly revolutionize the whole human species. If correctly improved and implemented this would be able to impact the human civilization to a great extent. The company said that the success of Neuralink is important for SpaceX to make settlements on Mars possible. It would use Neuralink's revenue and implement it on the Mars mission. The Link is highly anticipated and so it would be a break-through to see its development bring positive impact to the society.