(ReclaimingAmerica.net) – The FDA will allow Elon Musk’s Neuralink company to test its chip implants on humans after earlier tests on monkeys showed the animals “played pong with their minds.”
Musk founded Neuralink in 2016 to develop a “brain-computer interface” known as “the link.”
According to the billionaire, the company seeks to develop neural chip implants that are embedded in the human brain surgically to help disabled patients to talk or even restore eyesight.
“This is the result of incredible work by the Neuralink team in close collaboration with the FDA and represents an important first step that will one day allow our technology to help many people,” Neuralink wrote on Twitter.
“Recruitment is not yet open for our clinical trial. We’ll announce more information on this soon!” it added.
“Congratulations Neuralink team!” Musk wrote several hours later, retweeting the announcement.
While it was awaiting the FDA’s approval for human trials, Neuralink tested its technology on monkeys, showing how one of them could play video game pong with its thoughts.
Neuralink’s brain chips were supposed to show whether monkeys could control technology with their thoughts, but the trial caused 15 out of 23 animals to die.
“We want to be extremely careful and certain that it will work before putting a device into a human,” Musk said at the Neuralink headquarters in December.
In 2022, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine filed a complaint with the US Agriculture Department, claiming that macaques used in its trials suffered horrible pain and consequences.
The activist group said one monkey had holes drilled in its skull, while another monkey was missing toes and fingers, likely through self-mutilation.
Yet another case, a female macaque suffered tremendous vomiting, retching, and gasping after electrodes were implanted in her brain.
Neuralink’s monkey trials were performed with University of California, Davis scientists.
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is fighting legally to force the school to release 371 “grisly” photos of injured or killed monkeys in the experiments.
“These photos are public records created with public funds, and the public deserves access to the research they paid for,” commented the group’s Ryan Merkley.
