American startup Synchron, which specializes in creating brain-computer interfaces, has created a technology that allows paralyzed people to type text with the power of their mind.
With the help of a neural implant called Synchron Switch, which is placed in the brain through the circulatory system, a paralyzed person will be able to control the computer cursor with the power of his mind. This will help patients with stroke or degenerative diseases regain the ability to communicate with the outside world by sending messages, shopping online, etc.
To date, there have been seven successful implantations of the Synchron Switch chip: four in Australia and three in the United States. To prove the safety of the Switch implant, the company must perform at least six surgeries in the U.S.
Thomas Oxley, CEO of Synchron, said that losing the ability to send text messages is incredibly isolating and its recovery is very emotionally empowering.
Synchron Switch has been running continuously for at least 1 yearSynchron says the company's funding will help accelerate product development and begin basic clinical trials that will bring the technology closer to commercialization. Synchron managed to raise $75 million in investment in December 2022. Microsoft CEO Bill Gates and Amazon owner Jeff Bezos were among the startup's investors.
The results of a BCI Synchron system trial in Australia in January of this year showed that the technology is safe and there is no degradation in signal quality or performance for 12 months after surgery.
Synchron was founded by Dr. Thomas Oxley and Professor Nick Opie in 2016. It is based in New York City, but the company's research and development departments are in Melbourne, Australia.
Nick Opie has been working on this idea for more than a decade. The chip implantation technology he developed does not involve open surgery on the brain, but uses a minimally invasive procedure: the chip is implanted in one of the blood vessels close to the brain.
Synchron technology is currently undergoing clinical trials in the U.S., where the technology is being tested for everyday tasks such as texting, email, online shopping and more.
Neuralink ExperimentsNeuralink, the younger generation of Tesla and Twitter owner Elon Musk, is also actively working on brain implants, having announced in late 2022 that it plans to start testing brain implants on humans as early as 2023.
Neuralink is now working on a product consisting of a small device and wires with electrodes, as well as a robot that must cut part of a person's skull to implant a chip into his or her brain. The purpose of the device is to help people suffering from the consequences of a stroke. Thanks to the device, they should be able to communicate and express their thoughts through a computer.
Neuralink is also developing special chips for implantation in the human spinal cord, which should help people who are unable to walk again.
The technology startup Neuralink was founded in 2016, but has long remained Musk's most closely guarded business. Details about the company were virtually nonexistent until 2019, when Musk published a photo of a rat with a brain implant
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