Noland Arbaugh is the first person to have a chip implanted in his brain through Neuralink, a company owned by Elon Musk. Arbaugh, 30, who was paralyzed from the neck down as a result of a spinal cord injury while swimming in the lake in 2016, explained in an interview how the chip implanted in his brain affected his life.
How does Arbaugh’s Neuralink brain chip work?
In 2016, the same year that Noland Arbaugh experienced the accident, Elon Musk also became the co-founder of the Neuralink company. In January, Arbaugh became the first person to receive a device called Telepathy. This system, known as brain-computer interface or BCI, decodes the movement signals intended by the brain and converts them into computer commands. So Arbaugh only needs to think about this to move the cursor on his computer.
The young man, whose movements were very limited before the chip was implanted in his brain, could use his iPad with a pen he held in his mouth. Now, thanks to the chip in his brain, he can have full control of a computer just by thinking. Now he can play games and browse the internet as he wishes without moving.
Can perform multiple actions at the same time
Arbaugh, who announced that he was selected on the first day he applied for the chip, stated that he went through many different health screenings for a month. Stating that there is no need for extreme concentration to use the device, Arbaugh explained that it is now very easy to multitask with your brain:
“I’m constantly multitasking when I’m in sessions or playing games. I can open an audiobook or anything to watch and play games at the same time. “Doing all this requires very little brain power.”
Explaining that the only device he can control for now is a Macbook thanks to the chip in his brain, Arbaugh also announced that they will switch to a phone soon. Neuralink recently published a blog post describing Arbaugh’s first 100 days with the device.
A striking fact emerged in the article. It was learned that some of the implant’s threads, dotted with electrodes that read neural activity, were pulled from his brain. Speaking about this situation, Arbaugh stated that he first realized something was wrong when he lost control of the cursor.
Problem solved in two weeks
Saying that he never thought such a problem would happen to him, Arbaugh stated that he regained cursor control within two weeks with a small change made in the software. The young man, who said that he was afraid that the chip would stop working completely at first, stated that he no longer has any concerns about this issue.
Stating that his life changed completely after the implant, Arbaugh explained that he now feels more independent and has become less of a burden to the people around him. He underlined that what most paralyzed people want is to gain independence as well as full recovery.
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Noland Arbaugh explained that the first thing he wants to do, which he cannot currently do with the chip in his brain, is a robot that he can control:
“From this [Neuralink’in] I mentioned it at the all-hands meeting and I think she will do anything for me and be my babysitter, someone I can control. [Tesla] It would be great if I had an Optimus robot. This way, probably 90 percent of the things I need others to do will disappear.
Moreover, this method can also connect with other things. For example, I could be attached to a car; A Tesla would be pretty cool because they’re self-driving anyway. I just need to find a way in and set an address. “If I could do all this on my own, it would change everything.”
Arbaugh, who is known to have broken the human record in cursor control with BCI, also teased them and explained why he has not met other users with brain chips like him:
“No, I haven’t met them. Actually I want it. Maybe I need to take that first step and reach out. “Maybe they’re all angry that I broke world records.”