Latest news with #Blindsight
NBC News
4 days ago
- Business
- NBC News
Elon Musk's Neuralink raises $650 million in fresh capital
Elon Musk's brain tech startup Neuralink has closed a $650 million funding round, the company announced Monday. ARK Invest, Founders Fund, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners and other firms participated in the round, according to a press release. Neuralink said the fresh capital will help the company bring its technology to more patients and develop new devices that 'deepen the connection between biological and artificial intelligence.' Neuralink is building a brain-computer interface, or BCI, which is a system that translates brain signals into commands for external technologies. The company's first system, called Telepathy, involves 64 'threads' that are inserted directly into the brain. The threads are thinner than a human hair and record neural signals through 1,024 electrodes, according to Neuralink's website. The initial aim of the technology is to help patients with severe paralysis restore some independence. As of Monday, five patients have been implanted with Neuralink's technology, and are able to 'control digital and physical devices with their thoughts,' the release said. Neuralink is currently carrying out four separate clinical trials around its Telepathy system. BCIs have been studied in academia for decades, and several other companies, including Synchron, Paradromics and Precision Neuroscience, are developing their own systems. Paradromics on Monday announced it successfully implanted its BCI in a human for the first time. It's not clear what devices Neuralink will look to develop next, but Musk has for years espoused grand ambitions for the brain tech startup. He has even claimed that he would be willing to get an implant himself. One of the capabilities Musk has repeatedly highlighted is the ability to restore vision to blind patients. Neuralink received a 'Breakthrough Device' designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a device called Blindsight. This designation is granted to medical devices that have the potential to provide improved treatment for debilitating or life-threatening conditions. In a post on his social media platform X in September, Musk said Blindsight will enable even those who have lost both eyes and their optic nerve to see. Neuralink still has a long road ahead before it can commercialize these technologies.
CNBC
4 days ago
- Business
- CNBC
Elon Musk's Neuralink raises $650 million in fresh capital
Elon Musk's brain tech startup Neuralink has closed a $650 million funding round, the company announced on Monday. ARK Invest, Founders Fund, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners and other firms participated in the round, according to a release. Neuralink said the fresh capital will help the company bring its technology to more patients and develop new devices that "deepen the connection between biological and artificial intelligence." Neuralink is building a brain-computer interface, or a BCI, which is a system that translates brain signals into commands for external technologies. The company's first system, called Telepathy, involves 64 "threads" that are inserted directly into the brain. The threads are thinner than a human hair and record neural signals through 1,024 electrodes, according to Neuralink's website. The initial aim of the technology is to help patients with severe paralysis restore some independence. As of Monday, five patients have been implanted with Neuralink's technology, and are able to "control digital and physical devices with their thoughts," the release said. Neuralink is currently carrying out four separate clinical trials around its Telepathy system. BCIs have been studied in academia for decades, and several other companies including Synchron, Paradromics and Precision Neuroscience are developing their own systems. Paradromics on Monday announced it successfully implanted its BCI in a human for the first time. It's not exactly clear what devices Neuralink will look to develop next, but Musk has for years espoused grand ambitions for the brain tech startup. He has even claimed that he would be willing to get an implant himself. One of the capabilities Musk has repeatedly highlighted is the ability to restore vision to blind patients. Neuralink received a "Breakthrough Device" designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a device called Blindsight. This designation is granted to medical devices that have the potential to provide improved treatment for debilitating or life-threatening conditions. In a post on his social media platform X in September, Musk said Blindsight will enable even those who have lost both eyes and their optic nerve to see. Neuralink still has a long road ahead before it can commercialize these technologies.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Apple Bets On Brain Signals To Boost Accessibility
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is adding a suite of new accessibility toolsEye Tracking, Head Tracking, Switch Control for Brain Computer Interfaces, Assistive Access, Music Haptics, Name Recognition in Sound Recognition, expanded Voice Control and Large Text CarPlay supportall designed to let users navigate iOS and Apple Vision Pro hands-free. Eye and Head Tracking let you select and type by gazing or nodding, while the new Switch Control partners with Synchron's implantable Stentrode electrodes to read neural signals and operate your device. Tim Cook says, Accessibility is part of our DNA, and this neural-interface leap could transform life for users with paralysis or ALS by unlocking tens of thousands of potential new users. Apple's partnership with Synchron taps into cutting-edge BCI workakin to Elon Musk's Neuralink, which plans to implant its Blindsight device in 2030 patients later this yearpositioning Apple at the forefront of consumer-grade neural tech. Beyond BCIs, Apple is simplifying TV navigation with Assistive Access and giving deaf and hard-of-hearing users Name Recognition in Sound Recognition, while Music Haptics and expanded Voice Control support widen its reach. These updates follow reports that the Wall Street Journal first broke about Switch Control's neural feature and come as Apple aims to cement its promise of technology for everyone. Why it matters: By weaving brain signals into iPhone control, Apple isn't just expanding its accessibility toolkitit's betting neural interfaces are the next consumer frontier. Investors will watch adoption metrics and any FDA feedback on the Stentrode partnership when Apple reports Q3 results later this summer. Apple's current share price of $211.67 sits well above most traditional valuation benchmarks, signaling that investors are pricing in robust growth expectations. The GuruFocus GF Value estimate of $197.36 comes closest to today's levels, suggesting only a slim margin of safety, while the earnings-based DCF at $168.27 and the FCF-based DCF at $132.68 offer more conservative anchors. Metrics rooted in historical performancelike the Median PS Value of $144.82 and Peter Lynch's $96.57 figureimply that the stock is trading at a substantial premium to its past sales and earnings power. Measures that focus on balance-sheet strength, such as the Tangible Book at $4.47 and the negative Net Current Asset Value of $9.76, barely register against Apple's real-world market heft. Even the Graham Number of $26.71 and the Earnings Power Value of $63.11 point to a valuation far below where the market has placed the stock. In sum, unless Apple delivers outsized growth or margin expansion, today's price appears to rest on optimistic forecasts rather than the support of most conservative valuation frameworks. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
News18
03-05-2025
- Business
- News18
Neuralink Gets FDA Nod For Chip That'll Help Mute People Speak, Elon Musk Reacts
Last Updated: Neuralink has now asked people to register through its Patient Registry as it gets ready to begin human trials. Neuralink, Elon Musk's brain-chip company, has reached yet another significant milestone. A 'Breakthrough Device Designation" has been granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to the company for a new brain implant that will assist those who are unable to speak. The declaration follows Neuralink's announcement of the first successful human implantation of Blindsight, another technology designed to restore vision. This revolutionary communication chip is likely to go through human trials. In a post on X (previously Twitter), Neuralink said that the FDA had authorised their latest brain chip, which will help those with severe speech difficulties communicate again. The chip has received the 'Breakthrough Device Designation," a unique honour bestowed upon medical equipment that helps cure or diagnose illnesses that are life-threatening or permanently incapacitating. 'We've received Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA to help restore communication for individuals with severe speech impairment," Neuralink said while sharing a thread. According to the company, this chip is intended for those with neurological issues, including multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, stroke, ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), and others. 'This includes those affected by ALS, stroke, spinal cord injury, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions," Neuralink claimed in another post. All of these conditions impair speech and movement while allowing the brain to continue functioning normally. Neuralink has now asked people to register through its Patient Registry as it gets ready to begin human trials. 'If you or someone you love has lost the ability to speak, you can sign up to our Patient Registry today and help shape the future of communication," the company said on X. As the posts were gaining traction, Elon Musk took to X and affirmed that Neuralink will make this technology broadly available, allowing anyone to access it in the future. 'In the years to come, @Neuralink will make this technology widely available, so that ultimately anyone will have access to it," he proudly claimed. Reportedly, Neuralink was already testing the technology before it received FDA certification. Bradford G Smith, a user who had lost his capacity to talk due to ALS, expressed his story on X. According to Smith, the brain chip replaced a part of his skull, and a robot injected its ultra-thin threads into his brain while avoiding blood vessels. First Published:
India Today
02-05-2025
- Business
- India Today
Elon Musk Neuralink gets FDA nod for chip that will let speech impaired people speak, human trials soon
Just a month after the Blindsight chip's first implantation, Neuralink has announced that the FDA has also given it a go-ahead for the chip to help speech-impaired individuals. Elon Musk's brain-chip company took to X (formerly Twitter), stating that it has received, "Breakthrough Device Designation from the FDA to help restore communication for individuals with severe speech impairment." The tag of Breakthrough Device Designation for the device is awarded to certain medical devices that provide treatment or diagnosis of life-threatening conditions. advertisementWith this new development, the company aims to restore communication amongst individuals who have suffered from a chronic illness affecting their speech. The company further explains, "This includes those affected by ALS, stroke, spinal cord injury, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions." Elon Musk-owned company has also highlighted that human trials for the same will begin soon. In the same X thread, it urged the audience to participate in the trails. "If you or someone you love has lost the ability to speak, you can sign up to our Patient Registry today and help shape the future of communication," it receiving approval, the company had been working to improve its technology for users. Just a few days ago, an X user, Brad Smith, shared a post stating that Neuralink had helped him communicate after ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) robbed him of his ability to speak. He explained that the implant replaced a portion of his skull, and that its ultra-fine threads were inserted just a few millimetres into his brain by a robot, carefully avoiding blood vessels to prevent bleeding. advertisement The device contains 1,024 electrodes that detect his neural activity and transmit it to a computer, where AI processes the data and decodes Brad's intended movements in real time to operate a the brain implant, Brad is now able to move the cursor with his tongue and 'click' by clenching his jaw—a breakthrough that followed unsuccessful attempts to control it with his hands. This technology enables him to communicate through a computer, and he continues to train the system by guiding the cursor across the Brad's story is a testament to the potential of Neuralink, the FDA nod will take this tech to the next Blindsight chipSpeaking of brain chips, Elon Musk recently announced that its Blindsight chip has already been implanted in the first human in is an experimental implant designed to help individuals regain vision—even in cases where both eyes and the optic nerve are lost. As Elon Musk revealed last year, 'even those who have lost both eyes and their optic nerve' may be able to see again. The device works by bypassing the eyes entirely, directly stimulating the brain's visual cortex. According to Musk, 'provided the visual cortex is intact, it will even enable those who have been blind from birth to see for the first time.'advertisementIn essence, if the visual cortex remains functional, the Blindsight chip could offer people born blind the ability to experience sight for the very first startup is also working on brain-chip interfaces aimed at helping paralysed individuals, enabling them to control digital devices purely through thought—a feature the company refers to as InMust Watch
