Elon Musk’s brain implant company Neuralink said that 12 people have received its chip implants.
“There are now 12 people around the world with Neuralink implants. Collectively, they’ve had their devices for 2,000 days and accumulated over 15,000 hours of use,” said Neuralink in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
This number marks an increase from a prior announcement in June, when its partner Barrow Neurological Institute said that seven individuals had received the company’s N1 Implant. The N1 implant is a brain-computer interface, or BCI, device that allows people with quadriplegia to control a computer with their thoughts.
Quadriplegia is a condition characterized by the partial or total loss of function in all four limbs and the torso.
Barrow said in June that of the seven individuals who received the company’s N1 Implant, six underwent the procedure at Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix, Arizona.
Neuralink started human trials in 2024 on its brain implant after addressing safety concerns raised by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which had initially rejected its application in 2022, Reuters reported.
In July, it was reported that Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) CEO Elon Musk’s Neuralink aims to implant its chips in 20,000 people annually by 2031, potentially generating over $1B in yearly revenue.