Elon Musk's Neuralink is getting more competition
A brain-computer interface (BCI), a fusion of man and machine, has sparked human imagination since the Industrial Revolution. This week, the small field of BCI developers — which includes Elon Musk's Neuralink — was joined by Texan company Paradromics, who successfully installed its Connexus BCI in a patient undergoing epilepsy resection surgery at the University of Michigan.
The Connexus BCI, which is smaller than a dime, uses AI to translate brain signals at the neuron level into physical movement, including communication, for people with severe motor impairments due to ALS, strokes, or spinal cord injuries.
After three years of preclinical trials in sheep, Paradromics said that this human trial 'demonstrated Connexus can be safely implanted, record electrical brain signals, and be removed intact in less than 20 minutes, using surgical techniques familiar to neurosurgeons worldwide.'
It requires further approval at the clinical level before it can be commercialized.
The Texan company is the primary U.S. competitor of Neuralink, which completed three BCI surgeries in 2024. 'We are now a clinical-stage company,' said Paradromics CEO Matt Angle, who co-founded the company ten years ago. He added that the company plans 'several' similar surgeries in 2025.
Meanwhile, Chinese state-owned NeuCyber NeuroTech plans to implant its brain chip in 13 people by the end of the year, they announced in April. Other BCI competitors include Synchron, backed by Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos, and Precision Neuroscience, founded by former Neuralink employees.
Only Neuralink and Paradromics have BCIs that connect to brain tissue; Synchron's enters via a blood vessel, and Precision Neuroscience's sits on top of the brain. Proximity to individual neurons, as Paradromics' Connexus has, is considered key for high-quality, high-resolution signals that aid in speech in particular.
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