Elon Musk's Neuralink looks for three patients for long term brain implant study

Elon Musk’s brain-chip company is searching for three patients to test its implant that gives the ability to use digital devices by just thinking.

Elon Musk’s Neuralink, a brain-chip company, aims to enroll three patients to evaluate its device in a study expected to take several years to complete, according to a Reuters report which cited details from the US government's clinical trials database.

Neuralink's logo and Elon Musk's photo are seen in this illustration.(Reuters)

The company is testing its implant designed to give paralyzed patients the ability to use digital devices by thinking alone, a prospect that could help people with spinal cord injuries, according to the report.

The study uses a robot to surgically place a brain-computer interface (BCI) implant in a region of the brain that controls the intention to move, Neuralink had said.

However, Neuralink has for years fielded calls from interested patients, well before the company received approval last year to begin conducting trials in people, Neuralink sources told Reuters.

In January, Neuralink implanted the device in the brain of its first patient, Noland Arbaugh, who is paralyzed from the shoulders down due to a 2016 diving accident, which allowed Arbaugh to play video games, browse the internet and move a computer cursor on his laptop by thinking alone, according to company blog posts and videos.

According to eligibility criteria posted on the clinical trials database, patients must have limited mobility without improvement for at least one year, with a life expectancy greater than or equal to 12 months.

Neuralink's study is estimated to have a primary completion date of 2026, with the full study expected to be complete in 2031. The study will enroll patients between the ages of 22 and 75 years with conditions such as quadriplegia, the report read.