Business
The first human implants, a regulator’s findings and the hype
RECORD / AT A GLANCE
Human trial results reported by company / animal-welfare findings limited
The device works in early trials, by the company’s own accounts and patients’ demonstrations. Animal-welfare claims were partly upheld. Brain-computer interfaces did not start with Musk.
THE EVENTS / THE INVESTIGATION / THE STORY
2016
Musk co-founds Neuralink.
Dec 2022
A federal inspector general opens a probe tied to animal welfare.
May 2023
The FDA clears human trials.
Jul 2023
No breaches found beyond a self-reported 2019 incident.
Jan 2024
The first patient receives the device.
Feb 2024
FDA inspectors note record-keeping and quality-control problems.
READ THE FILE
What the implant does and what the company has disclosed.
What regulators actually found.
Open an article for its evidence, labeled AI assessment and numbered sources. Read the complete static edition ↗
WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS FILE
3 claims people make about this file, each rated documented, partly true, disputed, unproven or false. Think a rating is wrong? Use Dispute or Support, or join the Discussion.
Patients have demonstrated moving a cursor and playing games by thought, as the company reports. These are not peer-reviewed results.
Who says it: Neuralink, patients.
USDA found no breaches beyond one self-reported 2019 incident; FDA inspectors found lab record-keeping problems. A federal inspector general probe was opened.
Who says it: Former staff, animal-rights groups.
The device lets patients control a computer cursor. It does not restore movement or read thoughts in general.
Who says it: Hype online.
OPEN THE RECORD
Numbered citations in each article identify the relevant sources. These records have different purposes and evidentiary weight.
Company report on the first implant, including thread retraction.
Company progress report. Not peer reviewed.
A reference biography covering birth, education, companies, politics and family through 2026. A secondary summary; check numbers against filings.
Start of the inspector general probe.
USDA findings; the inspector general probe was separate.
Inspection findings on record-keeping and quality controls.
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What the implant does and what the company has disclosed.
The FDA approved Neuralink’s first human trial in May 2023, and the first implant was placed in January 2024. The patient, paralyzed from the shoulders down, demonstrated moving a cursor and playing games by thought. Neuralink also disclosed that some of the implant’s threads retracted from his brain and that it adjusted the software to compensate. [1][3]
The company’s later updates describe more patients and longer use. These are company reports, not peer-reviewed studies. [2]
What we can’t tell you. Independent, peer-reviewed results have not been published.
Company report on the first implant, including thread retraction.
Company progress report. Not peer reviewed.
A reference biography covering birth, education, companies, politics and family through 2026. A secondary summary; check numbers against filings.
What regulators actually found.
Former employees and animal-rights groups accused Neuralink of rushed experiments that caused needless suffering and deaths. A federal inspector general opened a probe in December 2022. [1]
In July 2023, USDA said it found no breaches of animal-welfare rules beyond one incident in 2019 that the company reported itself. In February 2024, FDA inspectors reported problems with record-keeping and quality controls at the company’s animal lab. [2][3]
What we can’t tell you. The inspector general probe’s outcome has not been made public.
Start of the inspector general probe.
USDA findings; the inspector general probe was separate.
Inspection findings on record-keeping and quality controls.
Approved reader comments and ratings appear here when JavaScript is on.