- Neuralink is launching a trial to see if patients can use its brain implant can control a robot arm.
- Elon Musk's company said the study was a step toward "not only digital freedom, but physical freedom."
- Musk previously said Neuralink could be combined with robotic limbs to create a "Luke Skywalker solution."
Neuralink has successfully implanted its brain chip in two human patients — and now it wants to hook it up to a robotic arm.
Elon Musk's brain implant startup said on Monday that it was launching a trial to test whether patients could use the Neuralink implant to control an "investigational assistive robotic arm."
"This is an important first step towards restoring not only digital freedom, but also physical freedom," read a post announcing the trial on the company's X account.
The trial, which Neuralink is calling Convoy, is very early in its development. But using Neuralink's brain implant to control robotic limbs has long been part of Elon Musk's vision for the company.
Last year, the billionaire suggested Neuralink could be combined with the robotic limbs of Tesla's Optimus robot to create a "Luke Skywalker solution," referencing the "Star Wars" protagonist's prosthetic hand.
Neuralink has said it has implanted its brain chip, which is designed to allow quadriplegic and paralyzed patients to control a computer with their mind, in two test subjects so far.
The implant captures brain activity and sends it to a computer via Bluetooth. It allows the user to control a computer cursor and perform activities, including playing video games, surfing the web, and designing 3D models through visualization.
Musk has suggested that Neuralink could have over a thousand patients with the implant by 2026, and the company is hiring manufacturing technicians and microfabrication specialists as it looks to ramp up production.
Neuralink did not immediately respond to a request for comment, sent outside normal working hours.