Elon Musk's brain chip startup Neuralink has reportedly received interest from thousands of potential patients

Elon Musk's brain chip startup Neuralink has reportedly received interest from thousands of potential patients, per BI.

Numerous individuals are reportedly expressing interest in becoming recipients of one of Neuralink's initial brain chips.

Founded by Elon Musk in 2016, Neuralink focuses on developing a brain-computer interface capable of enabling diverse applications, ranging from telepathic communication to mind-controlled gaming.

Before realizing broader applications, Neuralink aims to assist individuals with severe neurological disorders by enabling device control and communication through brain activity alone. Having obtained approval from the US Food and Drug Administration in May, Neuralink initiated the application process for human trials in September, seeking participants with quadriplegia or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

The response has been substantial, with thousands expressing willingness to undergo the brain-implant procedure, as reported by Bloomberg this week. While Neuralink has not yet conducted human brain-implant surgeries, insights into the process have been gleaned from the startup's videos and media reports.

The device replaces the portion of skull that the surgeon had removed.

Musk has said he wants the surgery to take less time and wants the company to eventually be able to perform the entire surgery without human intervention, Bloomberg reported.

Neuralink has reportedly done more than 150 implantation surgeries.