Paralyzed man who became first to receive Elon Musk’s Neuralink chip reveals how it has changed his life

A paralyzed man who has become the first to receive a ‘mind-reading chip’ from Neuralink has revealed how the tech has changed his life.

Noland Arbaugh from Arizona became the first person to have the advanced piece of technology from Elon Musk’s US neurotechnology firm, Neuralink, installed in January 2024.

Noland became paralyzed from the shoulders down following a diving accident in 2016, which presented the possibility that he would never be able to work, study or play games ever again, reports the BBC.

Speaking to the news outlet, Noland said: “You just have no control, no privacy, and it’s hard.

Noland is the first to have the Neuralink chip implanted (BBC)

“You have to learn that you have to rely on other people for everything.”

Yet the Neuralink chip has helped him restore a degree of independence – by allowing him to autonomously control a computer, using just his mind.

The brain computer interface (BCI) chip, which works by picking up on the small electrical impulses that are sparked when we think about moving into a digital command, has dramatically changed his quality of life.

The effects after the surgery were immediate, as he said he was able to control a cursor on a screen just by thinking about moving his fingers.

“Honestly I didn’t know what to expect – it sounds so sci-fi,” he explained.

Then as he watched his neurons spike, it ‘all sort of sunk in’ that he was able to control his computer using just his mind.