Hyderabad: Apple is reportedly working towards a future where people would be able to control their iPhones and other gadgets with their thoughts, using brain implants. This is similar to what Elon Musk's Neuralink is striving to achieve. Such a technology could allow people with severe spinal cord injuries, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), and those recovering from strokes to continue using their phones, laptops, and other gadgets.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Apple is working with Synchron, a brain-interface company that has developed a stent-like device called the Stentrode—an implant that can be inserted into a blood vessel near the brain's motor cortex. The implant can pick up brain activity and turn it into digital commands, effectively allowing brain signals to control digital devices. This is called a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) as it allows brain to communicate directly with a computer or device without requiring any conventional input methods.
BCIs translate brain signals through sensors and convert them into actions like typing or moving a cursor to perform actions like opening apps. As per the report, the Stentrode device uses Apple's "switch control" to let users operate devices with brain signals instead of touch. Currently, BCIs mimic mouse input, Synchron's CEO Tom Oxley told WSJ. However, Apple reportedly plans to release a new standard that will allow direct communication between implants and devices, simplifying development.
The report also quotes an early user of Apple's brain-implant system. Mark Jackson, an ALS patient, reportedly used the Synchron brain implant to control Apple’s Vision Pro headset and iPhone from home. Although he can’t travel or stand, the device enabled new experiences where he peered over the ledge of a mountain in the Swiss Alps through the headset and described feeling his legs shake.
Elon Musk's Neuralink has been testing its N1 device in a human for quite some time. While Neuralink implant uses over 1,000 brain-embedded electrodes, Synchron's implant reportedly uses only 16 electrodes. The sheer number of electrodes in the Neuralink implant allows the N1 device's first user to move a cursor with thoughts faster than some people using a mouse. Elon Musk envisions that such implants could one day enhance brain power to rival advanced artificial intelligence. Morgan Stanley estimates 150,000 Americans could benefit, with commercial approval expected by 2030, though Synchron's CEO is more optimistic and thinks it could happen sooner.
