Elon Musk’s New Company Will Merge Human Brain With Machines To Combat AI

With so many companies in the tech industry working on more advanced artificial intelligence technologies, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is doing something from the opposite direction. With the new company he procured, Musk wants to augment the human brain in order to counter the imbalance affected by the proliferation of AIs.

The company in question is called Neuralink and details about the secretive acquisition were broken by The Wall Street Journal. Reports about what the company was working on and why the Tesla boss wanted it have been circulating the media for some time now. However, it wasn’t until recently that more concrete details came out.

Augmenting the human brain or body, in general, is a concept that scientists and tech figures have been toying with for some time now. In Musk’s case, he wants to make sure that humanity does not fall behind on AIs in terms of intellectual capabilities.

Musk actually talked about the possibility of humans merging with machines during the 2016 Code Conference where he brought up something called a “neural lace.” It is supposedly a piece of technology that can be implanted in the human brain via surgery. Not only will it allow users to interact with computers without the need for keyboards, a computer screen, and mouse, it also holds the potential to boost human intellect.

Naturally, this kind of advancement can’t be expected to make an appearance for some time. For now, Neuralink will focus on helping to alleviate the effects of some of the most serious neurological diseases known to man, TechCrunch reports. The company will be looking at everything from treating epilepsy to providing therapy for patients suffering severe depression.

As far as the chances of these things happening goes, it’s practically guaranteed, at this point. Musk may not be the type of golden boy that Wall Street likes to have around, but he is a proven entrepreneur. He was able to make SpaceX and Solar City into two of the most promising ventures in the business despite considerable skepticism. Neuralink could just as easily become a game changer.