Neuralink and Transhumanism: Dreams of Immortality

“I wanna be software / The best design / Infinite princess / Computer mind”
– Recent tweet by Grimes (singer and on/off girlfriend of Elon Musk)

A lot has been made of the FDA’s recent go-ahead for human clinical trials for Elon Musk’s Neuralink. This marks a significant achievement for Musk’s brain-implant startup.

Neuralink, founded in 2016, has the potential to greatly improve the quality of life of individuals with disabilities. However, Musk also envisions it being used to enhance the cognitive abilities of “anyone who wants” in the medium term. A network of ultra-thin electrodes implanted in the brain will allow for seamless information exchange between humans and machines.(Physicist Stephen Hawking, who lost his ability to speak and ultimately died from ALS in 2018, believed that brain-computer interfaces would be the future of communication.)

Eventually, however, Musk sees Neuralink offering a pathway to a form of digital immortality - the classic transhumanist utopian ideal. The company's ultimate goal is to create a high-bandwidth, low-latency connection between the human brain and artificial intelligence (AI) systems, and even the ability to “upload yourself into a new unit” when your biological body dies.

With all the media attention around Neuralink, it may come as a surprise to some that this is not the only, or even the first, company working on this technology.

In the last ten years, there has been a significant increase in the development of brain-machine interfaces. These interfaces include implants, devices connected to peripheral nerves, and even helmet-like devices. The idea behind all these inventions is simple: tapping into the brain’s electrical signals and interpreting them.

But even more surprising for some might be to learn that the underlying technology can be traced back to as far back as the 1960s. This was when a researcher named Eberhard Fetz linked a meter needle to a single neuron in a monkey's brain. He then successfully trained the monkey to manipulate the needle through its brain activity.

The neurologist Dr. Philip Kennedy founded the company Neural Signals Inc. in the late eighties and developed the first introcortical BCI device for humans. It was successfully implanted for the first time in a human patient in 1996 by neurosurgeon Roy Bakay, but the identity of the patient remains unknown.

However, it was Kennedy’s work with Johnny Ray, a stroke survivor and musician who was left paralyzed and "locked in", that first garnered national and international attention. Kennedy's brain-computer interface allowed Ray, who relied on a ventilator, to type words using his mind.

The technology, therefore, has come a long way, slowly.

But things are speeding up.

The technology as it stands

Neuralink aside, some of the many companies working on these technologies are Synchron, Blackrock Neurotech, Science, BrainCo, Kernel, Openwater, and CTRL-Labs, a part of Meta's virtual reality division. Several universities are also doing valuable work in this growing field of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs).

BCIs are systems that interpret brain signals and convert them into commands for external technologies, basically establishing direct communication pathways between the brain and computers.

Neuralink

In the case of Neuralink, the core technology revolves around an implant called the "Link." This implant will be surgically placed directly inside a person’s skull, with an array of ultra-thin wires extending into the brain. The wires will contain electrodes capable of recording neural activity as well as stimulating specific regions of the brain.

The wires will be inserted into the brain by a robot. According to Musk, this would make the process of implanting the electrodes as simple and convenient as laser eye surgery.

Musk envisions that brain implants could potentially treat conditions such as ALS, obesity, depression, schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, and more.

He even sees it enabling capabilities like web browsing – for everyone.

But this is where the public may be drawing the line, for now. According to a 2021 survey by Pew Research, 78% of surveyed US adults would “probably” or “definitely” not want a computer chip implanted in their brains to enhance information processing speed. On the other hand, 77% expressed support for brain implants in medical applications.

In general, however, only 13% of the 10 260 U.S adults polled believed that such implants would be beneficial for society and 56% expressed concerns that it would have a negative impact.

Meanwhile, Neuralink is plowing ahead. As a longer-term goal, they are even geared toward what Musk calls "consensual telepathy”. In other words, the technology will enable the exchange of expressed concepts between a transmitter and receiver through a technological link.

But Musk predicts that it will take approximately 8-10 years before Neuralink's technology can be used by individuals without disabilities, as therapeutic applications must be prioritized and gain regulatory approval for human trials.

Synchron

Synchron's implant version may be more easily adopted. It is not as invasive as Neuralink's Link, as it does not require cutting into the skull. 53% of the respondents in the poll mentioned above expressed comfort with a brain-computer interface that did not require surgical procedures.

Synchron, established in 2012, has already successfully implanted devices into several patients. The first recipients were Graham Felstead and Philip O'Keeffe, both of whom are suffering from ALS, in 2020. “This is a new horizon. It really is,” O'Keeffe told The Economist.

Synchron's methodology builds upon decades-old established endovascular techniques. The Stentrode, resembling a stent, is a small, mesh-like device containing electrodes. It is inserted through the blood vessels. The Stentrode is equipped with small sensors and placed within the large vein next to the motor cortex. It is then connected to an antenna located beneath the skin in the chest, allowing for the collection of raw brain data from the motor cortex, which is subsequently transmitted outside the body to external devices.

This technology enables people with little or no physical mobility to control devices through thinking alone. This allows them to perform tasks such as writing, texting, emailing, shopping, and online banking – all through direct thought.

Neuralink: The Long Game

Musk has emphasized Neuralink's long-term objective to, ultimately, facilitate the co-evolution of humanity with AI.

Musk fears a scenario where a digital Superintelligence might pose an existential threat to humanity. He feels so strongly about this that he has signed a recent Open Letter, along with tens of housands of other experts and interested parties, calling for a six-month moratorium on the training of any AI systems more advanced than GPT-4.

Because Musk believes Superintelligence will eventually emerge, his proposed solution is that humans enhance their technical capabilities through brain-computer devices. “If you can’t beat it, join it,” he is fond of saying to promote this concept.

Musk sees the current state of human-machine integration, including the use of smartphones and computers, as an early form of cyborg existence. These devices, he says, already serve as extensions of ourselves.

In an interview with Joe Rogan in 2020, Musk said the most favorable future scenario for humans appears to entail merging with AI. In terms of long-term existence, he said, this is the objective of Neuralink: to establish a high-speed connection between the brain and AI, enabling a symbiotic relationship. Musk suggested that a third layer, represented by an AI extension of oneself, could exist in symbiosis with the limbic system and cortex.

So that instead of AI replacing us, it will radically change our capabilities? asked Rogan.

“Yes,” answered Musk. “It will enable anyone who wants to have superhuman cognition. Anyone who wants. This is not a matter of earning power because your earning power would be vastly greater after you do it. So, anyone who wants can just do it, in theory. That’s the theory. And if that’s the case, then, and let’s say, billions of people do it, then the outcome for humanity will be the sum of human will. The sum of billions of people’s desire for the future.”

Rogan then wanted to know how exactly such a “radically improved” human would differ from people today.

Musk answered that it would just speed up the access to information we already have through our smartphones. And eventually, he suggested, individuals may have the option to choose between retaining their biological selves or fully embracing the technological extension. “You will be essentially snapshotted into a computer at any time. If your biological self dies, you could probably just upload into a new unit. Literally.”

“Pass that whisky,” answered Rogan.

Transhumanism

The whole idea of merging humans and machines feeds into a philosophy and world-view known as Transhumanism. Transhumanism supports the use of technology, including AI, to enhance human abilities.

According to Britannica.com, transhumanists envision a future where technologies like AI, genetic engineering, cryonics, nanotechnology, etc. are used responsibly to slow down, reverse, or eliminate aging. This would result in longer human lifespans and enhanced cognitive and sensory capacities. Transhumanism proposes a transformation where humans, with augmented capabilities, evolve beyond their current state and become a superior species called the "posthuman."

The term "transhumanism" became popular through the 1957 essay of the same name by the English biologist Julian Huxley. Initially, Huxley focused on advancing the human condition through social and cultural changes. But the concept eventually became associated with scientific advancements.

In the 1980s, several transhumanist organizations and schools of thought emerged. During this period, conceptual artist Natasha Vita-More published a manifesto on transhumanism, envisioning a future that combined aesthetics, science, and technology to enhance sensory experiences and extend human life.

In the 1990s, "extropianism," a libertarian doctrine promoting the transcendence of human limitations through technology, gained prominence within the transhumanist movement. Max More, a British philosopher, co-founded the Extropy Institute with American philosopher and lawyer Tom W. Bell. The term "extropy" was coined to represent a concept opposing entropy, symbolizing the movement's proactive approach to expanding human potential.

In 1998, the World Transhumanist Association (WTA) was established by Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom and British philosopher David Pearce, aiming to promote transhumanism as a serious academic discipline. The WTA later rebranded itself as Humanity+ in 2008, seeking to present a more diverse and unified vision of transhumanism that incorporated ideas from both the Extropy Institute and the WTA. Humanity+ emphasized the responsible and ethical use of technology to enhance human capabilities.

Transhumanism gained support from notable entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, including Larry Page of Google, Jeff Bezos of Amazon, and Elon Musk. Page launched Calico Life Sciences LLC (Calico Labs) in 2013, a company dedicated to advancing technologies for extending human lifespan. In early 2022, Bezos and other investors invested $3 billion in Altos Labs, a biotechnology company focused on reversing aging and disease.

Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 with the goal of establishing human colonies on the Moon and Mars. In 2016, he established Neuralink.

The Cyborg Resistance

As transhumanist concepts progressed from theory to reality, ethical considerations have been gaining importance. Advocates of transhumanism argue that emerging technologies have the potential to eradicate diseases, offer solutions to pressing global issues, and otherwise improve human life.

But among the most prominent concerns of critics are the potential for social inequalities to be exacerbated by transhumanist technologies. In 2004, American political theorist Francis Fukuyama called transhumanism "the world's most dangerous idea". He cautioned that the offerings of biotechnology might come at a "frightful moral cost" to human rights, with "enhanced" individuals claiming superior rights to those left behind.

More than half of the respondents (57%) in the Pew poll mentioned earlier also worried that widespread use of brain interfaces could further widen the socioeconomic gap between high and low-income Americans. This may be partly why Musk was so quick to point out in the Rogan interview that Neuralink enhancements would be for “anyone who wants”.

Mostly, though, transhumanism has drawn comparisons to the eugenics movement, with fears that technology will be exploited by individuals seeking to become "superhumans." Some worry about a section of the human race being oppressed by cyborgs with enhanced perceptual, cognitive, and motor skills, while others fear the potential for mind control if BCIs are imposed on people.

As the concepts of transhumanism progress from theory to reality with technologies such as Neuralink, it is clear that ongoing discussions and interdisciplinary collaboration among scientists, ethicists, policymakers, and the public will be vital.

Ultimately, we want to ensure that these technologies serve the greater good and uphold human dignity.