Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface venture, Neuralink, announced the clearance for its first human clinical study this week. However, the response on social media was far from unanimous praise.
While the news drew congratulations from Twitter’s premium users, a significant share of reactions showed reluctance towards the technology, according to Business Insider. Many expressed doubts over the idea of an artificial chip in their heads, possibly fueled by the long-standing public fear of malevolent AI, a concern Musk himself has alluded to recently.
A number of tweets took aim at Musk’s past ambitious projects, some of which have seen high-profile failures. Tweeters pointed to incidents like spontaneous fires in Tesla vehicles and exploding rockets at SpaceX, using past events to question Musk’s ability to safely pioneer a technology as delicate as brain implants.
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Neuralink said its goal is to create implants to aid paralyzed individuals, an objective that Swiss researchers have recently achieved, according to the New York Times.
Musk, known for his audacious visions like colonizing Mars and revolutionizing traffic management, also faced criticism recently when technical issues on his Twitter Spaces disrupted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ 2024 campaign announcement.
Despite the negativity, Musk has indicated that he’s willing to get the implant himself once human trials commence could somewhat counterbalance the skepticism.
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