Elon Musk wants to connect the human brain to the smartphone – with Neuralink, a mini-computer in the head. The device should also have potential in the medical field. We see what else it can do.

It sounds like science fiction – and maybe you have to ask yourself several times whether a mini-computer really has to be in the human head. But Elon Musik wants to bring exactly one on the market to connect us to the smartphone.

The device is called Neuralink and is designed to convey information between neurons and computers. The American entrepreneur has already shown how this should work in a video presentation – using pigs.

A Neuralink prototype was implanted into the animals beforehand.

If a pig moved its trunk, for example, the nerve connections were transferred to a computer via Bluetooth connections. This enabled the researchers to predict the animal’s coming movements with a high degree of probability.

Neuralink: A mini-computer for the human brain

The chip is eight millimeters thick and 23 millimeters in diameter. It should of course not actually be used on pigs, but ultimately on people.

According to Musk, he also sees potential in the treatment of pain, visual disturbances, hearing loss, insomnia, brain damage and injuries to the spinal cord.

The current prototype is already equipped with sensors for temperature, pressure and movement measurement. Musk says that the device can “monitor health and warn, for example, of a risk of heart attack or stroke”.

When Neuralink is implanted in the human brain, the technology should communicate with an app on the smartphone via Bluetooth. Here, too, one should think about possible effects. After all, a technology chip in the body initially has nothing to do with human nature.

However, Musk is of the opinion that in the future people will have to connect their brains to computers in order to be able to keep up with the ever-evolving artificial intelligence.

When is Neuralink available?

Elon Musk has not yet tested his mini-computer on humans. There is also no specific schedule for a possible test phase or even the start of production. The Tesla founder has not yet given a price range.

The video presentation and the animal experiments are said to have primarily served to find new employees for Neuralink. Around 100 people are currently working on the technology. However, Musk doesn’t think it’s unlikely that the project will eventually employ 10,000 people.