The Elon Musk-backed BCI maker can now begin the CAN-PRIME study, its first international trial. It evaluates the company’s fully implantable, wireless BCI, building upon the ongoing PRIME study in the U.S.
Neuralink said the study marks “an important step towards developing innovative BCI technology that has the potential to transform the lives of individuals with neurological disorders around the world.”
Like the PRIME study, CAN-PRIME aims to evaluate the safety of the Neuralink implant and surgical robot. It looks at the initial functionality of the BCI, called Telepathy, in enabling people with quadriplegia to control external devices with their thoughts. Neuralink opened the trial to Canadian residents with limited or no ability to use both hands due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or cervical spinal cord injury.
The company completed the first human implant of its BCI in January. A nine-minute livestream demonstration showed Noland Arbaugh using the Neuralink BCI to move a computer cursor and play chess online. The company also shared plans for another human implant this past summer.
The remotely rechargeable implant goes along with electrode-laced threads that go further into the brain. The company also has an R1 robot designed to implant the BCI system while avoiding vasculature.
Analysts see a total addressable market (TAM) worth around $400 billion in the U.S. alone for BCI technology.Learn more about BCIs and some of the players in the spaceHERE.
