Elon Musk's Neuralink has been receiving tons of feedback from the deaf community after the tech entrepreneur proposed plans to use brain implant technology to restore hearing.
What Happened: Over the weekend, Musk said that Neuralink could eventually restore hearing for people who have experienced total hearing loss since birth, thanks to the device’s ability to activate brain neurons that process sound.
“There is a clear path to restoring hearing with a Neuralink, even for someone who has had total loss of hearing since birth, as our device directly activates the neurons in the brain that process sound,” posted on X, formerly Twitter.
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However, the suggestion sparked an immediate response from the deaf community.
A user, who goes by the handle name @DeafLibertarian, urged Musk to engage with deaf adults before proceeding. "We deserve a say," the user wrote.
Some other users also supported the call for inclusion, with some voicing concerns about the implications of such technology on deaf culture and identity.
However, there was also a section of people who said that deaf people have the choice to either get these implants or not, but they cannot decide what the research should be about.
Why It’s Important: Musk's latest comments came after Musk's he revealed during a Y Combinator fireside chat that within the next six to twelve months, Neaurlink plan to carry out their first vision implants -- aiming to restore sight by interfacing directly with the visual cortex, even for people who are fully blind.
He also mentioned that one of their monkeys involved in testing has had the visual implant for three years.
Meanwhile, Neuralink has also implanted its brain-computer interface in a sixth person, who was able to control a video game using only their thoughts just a week after the procedure.
Last month, Neuralink secured more than $650 million through its Series E funding round -- attracting investors like Cathie Wood's ARK Invest -- bringing its current valuation to around $9 billion.
Photo Courtesy: Kemarrravv13 on Shutterstock.com
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
