Elon Musk's Neuralink has announced that its experimental vision restoration implant has been named a "breakthrough device" by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This was reported by Reuters.
This status is granted to certain medical devices that provide treatment or diagnosis of life-threatening conditions. This is intended to accelerate the development and validation of devices under development.
The experimental device, known as Blindsight, "will allow even those who have lost both eyes and the optic nerve to see," Elon Musk said in a post on the X platform.
The Blindsight device from Neuralink will enable even those who have lost both eyes and their optic nerve to see.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2024
Provided the visual cortex is intact, it will even enable those who have been blind from birth to see for the first time.
To set expectations correctly, the vision… https://t.co/MYLHNcPrw6 pic.twitter.com/RAenDpd3fx
Neuralink has not yet commented on when human trials of the Blindsight device are expected to begin.
By the way, this year Neuralink implanted brain chips in two patients. The first surgery took place at the beginning of the year, and the second in the summer. Both patients had spinal cord injuries. After the surgeries, they made progress, including being able to perform certain actions, such as playing video games, with their minds.