What Neuralink’s testing could mean for prosthetics

Elon Musk has been in the news a lot lately, for better or worse. However, there’s no denying that Neuralink's forthcoming testing could lead to huge strides in the realm of limb mobility.

As Wired recently reported, Neuralink has announced that it will run trials on a wireless prosthetic limb controlled by a brain implant. As it stands, the BCI (brain-computer interface) allows a person to control external stimuli, such as moving a mouse cursor or turning on an audio book or TV.

With the ability to connect the chip to other devices, you can imagine just how smart and convenient life could become for those with mobility issues. Calibrating an arm to sync with an individual’s motor skills or reflexive actions can take a long time, and some individuals are reluctant to sit and fine-tune this process every morning.

However, Neuralink’s upcoming tests could be a potential game-changer, enabling disadvantaged individuals to lead a fully functional life. They could complete household tasks with sophisticated dexterity, like folding laundry, washing dishes, cooking prep, and even personal grooming tasks such as brushing teeth, shaving, or applying makeup.

Expansion into Canada

Neuralink is currently recruiting for its first clinical trial in Canada, hosted at Toronto Western Hospital. This expansion means that patients with neurological disorders can test the control of external devices with their cognitive ability alone.

Patients with spinal cord injuries, who may have limited or no use of their hands, are being targeted for the trial. Taking the trials beyond Silicon Valley and into a credible testing lab could increase the safety of implants.

Continued trials, coupled with a focus on prosthetic limb integration, show the practical side of the technology, moving it beyond the initial opposition to such chips.

While the idea of a chip in the brain may seem Black Mirror-esque at first, from a patient-centric perspective, it becomes a much more ethical proposition.

Ethical and societal concerns

Despite the potential, there is fear that in the worst-case scenario, irreversible damage could be caused. The integration of brain and computer interfaces is still largely unexplored, and it is not yet clear how easy it might be to unsync the two. Adding to the ethical dilemma is the question of animal rights, with concerns over the suffering of test pigs.

While Neuralink’s progress may excite proponents of neural technology, the question of medical data privacy remains. Opponents have raised concerns about cognitive liberty, mental privacy, mental integrity, and psychological continuity. These issues could become even more pressing as the technology evolves.