In the UK, a paralyzed man uses his "thought" to control computer typing and communicate with his family! This is not a movie plot, but Neuralink’s latest human experiment. When a person's thoughts can directly control machines, the boundary between humans and technology is being quietly rewritten.Just a few days ago, something happened in an operating room in London that shocked the global AI community and the medical community.
A man who suffers from motor neuron disease and is almost paralyzed can control a computer with only his "thoughts" after being implanted with Musk's brain-computer interface device.
This is not a simulation in a laboratory, nor is it a special effect from a science fiction movie, but a button that restarts the human brain in the real world.
This scene makes people feel awe, curiosity, and a little scared at the same time.
After all, when thoughts can be read by machines, the line between humans and technology will become blurred.
And this man’s name is Paul.
Mind Reboot: Paul uses his mind to control the computer
In an operating theater at University College London Hospital, doctors huddle around a sophisticated robotic arm.
That’s Neuralink’s surgical robot R1. It can implant electrode wires thinner than a hair into the cerebral cortex with microscopic precision.
The person who underwent the surgery was a British man named Paul who suffered from motor neurone disease. This disease causes gradual neurological degeneration and eventually the loss of speech and mobility.
For Paul, even wanting to speak became a sign of futility.
After the implantation was completed, a coin-sized device was placed on his skull. Through a wireless connection, electrical signals from the brain are transmitted to an external computer in real time.
A few hours later, the doctor asked him to try "imagining" that he was moving the cursor.
The arrows on the screen shook slightly. For the first time, he couldn't control the direction. The second time, the cursor began to slide slowly to the right. Ten minutes later, Paul typed the first word on the screen: Hello.
At that moment, his family members sat in front of the surveillance screen and couldn't help crying when they saw him "speaking" again.
Neuralink's chip implantation in the UK is part of its international clinical research program GB-PRIME, with partner institutions including University College London Hospital and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Perhaps to Neuralink, these signals are just a stream of numbers; but to these patients, it means that the brain can finally restart after years of silence.
Thoughts are translated into instructions: How does Neuralink read the brain?
The core device of Neuralink is the N1 chip.
It is smaller than a coin, but can connect to the cerebral cortex through 64 electrode wires that are thinner than a hair and capture the discharge signals of thousands of neurons.
Neuralink says its device can help people with serious medical conditions control external devices
The signals themselves have no semantics and are like a jumble of electrical noise.
The working principle of the chip is to let the AI model "learn" the rules behind these signals - when a person has the idea of "moving", "clicking" or "picking up", a specific neural pattern will be activated in the brain.
After Neuralink's surgical robot is implanted, the chip will start working immediately. It can capture real-time changes in neural activity in the brain almost as soon as the patient wakes up.
Neuralink describes the process this way:
Our system is able to record the activity of individual neurons with high fidelity and, through machine learning algorithms, map specific neural patterns to specific operational intentions.
Paper address: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09761-x
This means that the brain does not need to make sounds or movements, just think, and the machine will understand.
A few months ago, Neuralink announced a new experimental screen on the official X account:
Nick, a patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, has lost the use of both arms. Now, he is using a brain-computer interface to control a robotic arm to steadily put the spoon into his mouth.
Neuralink also showed the training progress of another subject, Paul.
Not only can he control the computer cursor with his thoughts, he is also working with engineers to try to use this chip to play his favorite game - "Dawn of War".
In these two images, the boundaries between AI, neuroscience and mechanical systems are completely opened.
Machines are not just "tools" but extensions of the body; consciousness is no longer trapped in the mind but can directly touch reality.
This is exactly Musk’s vision:
Neuralink's goal is to make human thinking a part of computing.
Miracle and anxiety coexist: Where are the boundaries of freedom of thought?
As the miracle continues to be replicated, it also begins to become a new reality.
According to data released by Neuralink, 12 subjects around the world have been implanted with its brain-computer interface device, with a cumulative use time of more than 15,000 hours and a total wearing time of 2,000 days.
From London to California, more and more brains are being connected to chips. Human thoughts began to appear in data sheets in the form of neural activity.
Those flashing dots represent the firing of neurons; and behind these numbers is every life that is still trying to restart.
However, the problem is clearly before us.
Currently, Neuralink’s clinical research is still in its early stages. All subjects face the same risks: the implanted device may become infected, displaced, or fail, and signal attenuation may also lead to unstable data decoding.
The deeper concern lies in the ownership of data. In brain-computer interfaces, the core resource is not the chip, but the "brain signal" itself.
Those are a person's most private activities: memories, desires, hesitations and impulses.
Who will control these collected, stored, and analyzed data in the future? Is it the hospital, the company, or the patient himself?
In this regard, the Guardian commented:
When we think of the human brain as an information system, we have to ask: Who has access to it? And who can close it?
In some academic discussions, researchers have proposed the concept of "neuro-rights", which is considered to be a new form of human rights that humans must face in the future.
Chile and the European Union have both begun drafting relevant regulations in an attempt to limit the misuse of brain data by companies.
But reality is clearly faster than legislation. In Musk's vision, Neuralink's ultimate goal is not only medical assistance, but also a direct symbiosis between humans and AI.
If that day does come, our thoughts, emotions and even dreams may become input to the algorithm.
For Nick and Paul, this is just a new light on life; but for the entire human race, this is also a new boundary testing.
We are standing at a crossroads: on one side is "technology allows people to regain their voices" and on the other side is "thoughts are beginning to be recorded."
The brain-computer interface is the light that blurs the boundary between the two.
Paul typed the first "Hello" on the screen, and Nick used his mind to let the robotic arm feed him. These seemingly small actions are actually redefining the meaning of "connection."
Technology allows them to be heard by the world again, and it also allows us to see human potential again.
But between wonder and anxiety, we also need new courage to face a future that is gradually understanding us.