Semafor reports that Neuralink raised another $600 million in a deal that values the company at $9 billion before the infusion of funds.
The report cites people with knowledge of the matter saying that the Elon Musk-backed brain-computer interface (BCI) venture brought in $600 million. This report comes about a month after a report that the company hoped to raise around $500 million.
According to Semafor, Neuralink carried a $5 billion value in 2023, but has continued to pile on fundraising. Musk announced in August 2023 that Neuralink brought in $280 million. A few months later, the company brought in another $43 million. The funds are evidently not stopping in the hot BCI market, for which analysts see a $400 billion opportunity.
While increasing its financial value, Neuralink has also achieved several significant development and clinical milestones. It completed the first human implant of its Telepathy BCI implant in January 2024. The second implant followed last year. A nine-minute livestream showed Noland Arbaugh using the Neuralink BCI to move a computer cursor and play chess online.
Current studies are looking at Telepathy as an enabling technology for people with quadriplegia. It could allow them to control external devices with their thoughts.
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. It also received approval to launch a U.S. study for its N1 implant controlling a robotic arm.
Musk, Neuralink’s controversial co-founder, said he expected the total implants to reach “high single digits” in 2024. However, the company hit a snag over a potential wiring issue with the BCI in May 2024, saying that several threads retracted from the brain in the weeks following the first human implant. Neuralink also has a sight-restoring implant in the works.
