Hope for life-changing therapies comes with a chilling caveat
Illustration by Liz Zonarich / Harvard Staff Science & Tech Hope for life-changing therapies comes with a chilling caveat Sy Boles Harvard Staff Writer March 10, 2025 5 min read Fellow’s paper draws from history to urge caution on brain-computer interfaces On Jan. 28, 2024, Noland Arbaugh became the first person to receive a brain chip implant from Neuralink, the neurotechnology company owned by Elon Musk. The implant seemed to work: Arbaugh, who is paralyzed, learned to control a computer mouse with his mind and even to play online chess. The device is part of a class of therapeutics, brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), that show promise for helping people with disabilities control prosthetic limbs, operate a computer, or translate their thoughts directly into speech. Their current use is limited, but with millions of people living with spinal cord injuries, strokes, and other conditions, some estimates put the market for BCIs at around $400 billion in the U.S. alone. A new discussion...