Elon Musk Launches Neuralink, a Brain-Computer Interface Company

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So-called smart devices are about to get a whole lot smarter, courtesy of Elon Musk.

The tech entrepreneur behind Tesla and SpaceX is in the early stages of building a company to connects humans and computers, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Neuralink, as the venture is called, was founded as a medical research company last summer. The company is centered around building brain implants that can help merge people and software as a means of keeping pace with artificial intelligence, The Verge reports.

Brain-computer interfaces, or neural-laces, can, in theory, augment memory or directly communicate with computers. Medical uses will likely be the first applications of a brain-computer interface, given that healthy people may not be keen on having such a radical surgical procedure.

Although Neuralink has no public presence, Musk has openly discussed his interest in brain implants before. “Over time I think we will probably see a closer merger of biological intelligence and digital intelligence,” he recently said at a recent event in Dubai, according to The Verge.

Paypal, of which Musk is a founder, acquired Braintree, a company focused on restoring damage done by neurodegenerative disease, in 2013. Its co-founder Bryan Johnson confirmed Musk’s involvement with Neuralink.

—RealClearLife