The brain integration tech called Neuralink from chronic over-promiser and under-deliverer Elon Musk has been shrouded in mystery recently, but not for much longer. Musk announced on Twitter today that his company behind the implant, aptly named Neuralink Corp., will be giving us an update on the goings-ons behind the scenes today at 1 p.m. AEDT.
Update from @Neuralink at 6pm PT
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 30, 2022
How to watch the Neuralink event
The company had been under the radar as of late, but last week Neuralink tweeted out a cryptic message that read “Please join us for show and tell,” with a date and time of November 30 at 6 p.m. PT. Other than the tweets from Neuralink and Musk, information on the event and how/where to watch it has been incredibly scarce, and the company did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment. However, past events from Musk’s companies such as Tesla and SpaceX have been streamed on YouTube. Neuralink also said on Twitter that there will be a live Q&A during the event, and viewers can submit questions now by replying to the company’s tweet.
What is Neuralink?
The Neuralink Corporation was co-founded by Elon Musk in 2016 as a company to develop brain-computer interfaces named Neuralinks. In the beginning, Neuralink was described by Musk as a way to treat brain disorders like Parkinson’s, before the tech tycoon expanded his goals for the product, later stating that the Neuralink could help us avoid the AI apocalypse by fostering a singularity between human and tech. The actual Neuralink device remains highly secretive, but early renderings showed a device planted behind the ear, with over 1,000 electrodes running up into the brain.
Most recently, in April 2021, the company unveiled a video that illustrated a monkey apparently outfitted with the Neuralink tech playing Pong on a television screen with its mind. Since then, the company has been pretty devoid of major updates, except for pushing back against criticism following reports that some monkeys died due to infections during the testing of the Neuralink devices. Before Neuralink reaches consumer brains, the company still needs to conduct human trials as well as obtain FDA approval since the tech is considered a medical device.
Neuralink has some new competition in the brain computer space. The company’s co-founder and former president Max Hodak launched his own brain computer interface startup called Science Corp. Hodak parted ways with Neuralink last year and its recently been announced that his rival company has raised $US160 ($222) million in total funding so far.