Science

Brad Smith, the third patient to receive a Neuralink brain implant and the first with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), has reached a milestone: he can now communicate solely through his thoughts. Although he is nonverbal and uses a ventilator to breathe, Smith controls a computer with his mind, types, navigates apps and even speaks using a version of his voice cloned through artificial intelligence.
Neuralink's implant, called "Link," consists of 1,024 electrodes connected by very thin wires that are inserted into the motor cortex of the brain. The device connects to a MacBook Pro via Bluetooth, and by training the system to recognize neural signals, Smith has created personalized tools like a virtual keyboard and shortcuts for faster communication. To improve his typing speed, he has collaborated with Neuralink to develop a chat app that uses AI to suggest ready-made responses, which he selects simply by thinking. Notably, the AI-generated voice is based on recordings made before Smith lost the ability to speak, giving his communication a more personal feel. This development marks a major step forward for brain-computer interface technologies and opens up new horizons for helping people with severe motor disorders, offering them a new and more dignified way to interact with the world. Neuralink, the company founded by Elon Musk in 2016, aims to develop direct interfaces between the human brain and electronic devices. Through innovations in the miniaturization of electrodes and robotic surgeries, Neuralink aims not only to help patients with neurological disorders, but also to combine artificial intelligence with human intelligence in the future. The “Link” implant project is the first concrete step towards realizing this ambitious vision.