03-07-2025
Elon Musk's brain chip implant lets paralysed patient turn on his TV and play video games, all through brain signals
Elon Musk's Neuralink has always been surrounded by big promises and even bigger questions. Can a chip in the brain really change the lives of people who have lost the ability to move? In Miami, the answer is starting to look like yes. A clinical trial at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine is showing what happens when such novel technology operates as intended, and the results are hard to ignore.
RJ, a military veteran paralysed in a motorcycle accident, is now part of a small group in the US to receive the Neuralink implant. The device, about the size of a coin, is meant to help people with severe paralysis operate computers, smartphones, and other devices with their minds. For RJ, it meant playing video games, moving a cursor, and turning on his TV for the first time in years. These are small steps, but for someone with paralysis, they matter.
The procedure seems straightforward on paper. Surgeons use a robotic system to insert more than 60 ultra-thin threads into the brain's movement centre. Each thread is finer than a strand of hair. Most patients are out of the hospital the next day, ready to see what the chip can actually do. But there are risks, such as requiring more surgeries for optimal performance of the chip, along with performance issues owing to how new the tech still is.
The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis is running the trial for people aged 22 to 75 who have lost the use of both hands due to spinal cord injury or ALS. Neuralink is also expanding to Canada, the UK, and the UAE. The company says it wants to go beyond controlling devices, looking at ways to restore speech, movement, and even vision for people with neurological conditions. For now, the focus is on what the chip can do for people in domestic settings.
RJ's experience shows both the promise and the limits of the technology. He reports being able to play games and control devices, but the long-term impact is still being studied. The trial is just getting started, and only time will tell how well the device works and what risks might come up.
Neuralink's trial in Miami is testing what is possible and seeing whether this technology can make a practical difference. For people living with paralysis, it could be a life-changing invention if all goes well. For now, we'll have to wait and see how such brain-computer interfaces progress in the near-future.
