Musk now wants the \u00ab\u00a0happy monkey\u00a0\u00bb to play mind-Pong with his fellow simians.<\/b>
\nElon Musk claims his startup Neuralink has connected a chip to a monkey\u2019s brain that the primate is now using to play video games with its mind. Musk said Neuralink is currently developing brain implants that help people with paralysis control devices with their thoughts. He added that the tech could also enable people to communicate through their minds or save their brain state so when they die it gets uploaded to another body. The Tesla tycoon provided the rare update on Neuralink during a Sunday appearance on the invite-only Clubhouse app. [Read: How this company leveraged AI to become the Netflix of Finland] He described the device as \u201ca Fitbit in your skull with tiny wires that go to your brain.\u201d If you\u2019re worried about the poor animal with cables sticking into his brain, Musk promised that \u201che\u2019s a happy monkey.\u201d He said an inspector from the US Department of Agriculture called the lab \u201cthe nicest monkey facilities she\u2019d ever seen in her career.\u201d The world\u2019s richest person now wants the simians to \u201cplay mind-Pong with each other.\u201d He\u2019s also invited anyone who\u2019s worked on advanced wearables, phones, or robots to apply for a job at Neuralink. Neuralink\u2019s tests have thus far been limited to pigs and primates, but that didn\u2019t prevent Musk from speculating on the potential for humans: Musk added that Neuralink has already successfully tested implantation, removal, and reimplantation. He said the company will \u201cprobably\u201d soon release new videos that show its progress. But Musk\u2019s claims should be taken with a large pinch of salt for now. The SpaceX founder previously promised to have a million robo-taxis on the road in 2020. His recent Neuralink demo also didn\u2019t live up to the hype. Neuralink was one of many topics Musk covered during his 90-minute Clubhouse Q&A. As well as monkeys, he mused on Mars, memes, and meetings. He also had a chat with the CEO of Robinhood about the app\u2019s controversial decision to disable trading for GameStop. If you wanna hear about Space Karen\u2019s plans to build your cars, put chips in your brain, and take you to Mars, you can catch a stream of the conversation on YouTube. Published February 1, 2021 \u2014 17:47 UTC<\/p>\n