First human with Neuralink brain chip demonstrates moving cursor with his mind: 'Can't even describe how cool it is'

The first human to have a Neuralink computer chip surgically implanted in his brain is Noland Arbaugh, a 29-year-old man who is paralyzed from the shoulders down due to a diving accident eight years ago. During a live stream, Arbaugh demonstrated how he uses his thoughts to move a computer cursor around a screen to play online chess and toggle on and off a music stream.

The Neuralink chip contains 1,000 electrodes programmed to gather data about the brain's neural activity and movement intention, which is then sent to a Neuralink computer for decoding to transform thoughts into action. Arbaugh explained that he simply imagines the cursor moving where he wants it to go and it does. He described the experience as "like using the Force on the cursor" and expressed his excitement about being able to do this with his mind. Arbaugh mentioned that the chip technology is a work in progress but has already changed his life, allowing him to play online chess and video games without needing assistance. The surgery to implant the chip was described as "super easy" and Arbaugh was released from the hospital the next day with no cognitive impairments.

However, he acknowledged that there are still challenges and work to be done. The Neuralink chip was approved for human trials by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last year, and the company has not disclosed the number of participants or trial locations. Arbaugh signed up for the implant because he believes it will change the world and expressed his gratitude for being part of this groundbreaking technology...