The first Neuralink implant in a human malfunctioned after several wires recording neural activity were retracted from the brain, the Elon Musk-owned startup revealed on Wednesday.
The wires retracted in the weeks following surgery in late January that placed Neuralink hardware in 29-year-old Noland Arbaugh’s brain, the company said in a blog post.
This reduced the number of effective electrodes and the ability of Arbaugh, a quadriplegic, to control a computer cursor with his brain.
“In response to this change, we modified the recording algorithm to be more sensitive to signals from the neural population, improved the techniques for translating these signals into cursor movements, and improved the user interface,” Neuralink said in the blog post.
The company said the adjustments resulted in a “rapid and sustained improvement” in bits per second, a measure of cursor control speed and accuracy, surpassing Arbaugh’s initial performance.
Although the issue does not appear to pose a risk to Arbaugh’s safety, Neuralink has reportedly floated the idea of removing his implant, according to Wall Street Journal.
The company also told the Food and Drug Administration that it believes it has a solution to the problem that occurred with Arbaugh’s implant, the Journal reported.
The implant was placed just over 100 days ago. In the blog post, the company praised Arbaugh’s ability to play online computer games, browse the Internet, live stream and use other applications “all by controlling a cursor with his mind.”
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