Elon Musk’s Neuralink Looking to Treat Tinnitus

[tommyd87]

He has already invested $100 million into the company. He is likely to invest more. Not like he has a shortage of money with his recent uptick in wealth.

Yeah I can see that this then won't be a project that he will lie down on. Wouldn't surprise me if he doesn't either try and force the issue or make more effort to get it in people. It would be just very nice if he invested in some of the actual restorative projects too.

 

[asey20]

It would be just very nice if he invested in some of the actual restorative projects too.

Yeah it would but he is more into technology advancements then biopharmaceuticals. If this can cure tinnitus then there is potential to understand more about the mechanism and cure tinnitus in less non-invasive ways in the future.

It's good that this is happening regardless and he does have the money to keep backing the project.

 

[asey20]

Honestly, I'm so fed up that if it was possible to get this procedure done in the next 10 years with it getting rid of tinnitus while also providing other benefits, then I think it's worth all the risks.

Elon keeps getting richer so let's see him put a billion into this and speed it up.

 

[asey20]

The technology just keeps getting safer too. Neuralink over DBS for sure.

https://www.inverse.com/innovation/integrating-electronics-with-the-body-study/

Intriguingly, the development of a new, biocompatible polymer coating for electronic implants by a team of researchers at the University of Delaware could be the key to better understanding this biological black box.

These polymers would not only leave less scarring on biological tissue than inorganic-coated electronics but would also allow scientists to fine-tune the sensitivities of polymers — which could allow for the creation of early warning systems for the presence of harmful diseases.

 

[Sevv]

Livestream in 85 minutes for the update, if you're interested. I'll read the summary tomorrow.

 

[Jack Straw]

Hearing loss is on the list of things that this is supposed to target, but seems like it is also in the very early stages.

 

[Sevv]

Hearing loss is on the list of things that this is supposed to target, but seems like it is also in the very early stages.

Curing hearing loss with Neuralink I can only imagine to happen if you plugged it into an artificial ear and directly linked that to the sound processing parts in the brain through Neuralink. Good luck with that. Seems a lot easier to just regenerate those hair cells.

 

[Jack Straw]

Curing hearing loss with Neuralink I can only imagine to happen if you plugged it into an artificial ear and directly linked that to the sound processing parts in the brain through Neuralink. Good luck with that. Seems a lot easier to just regenerate those hair cells.

Maybe it's not even about hearing sounds you lost while having tinnitus but just blocking the neurological pathway creating the tinnitus signal, which this could do.

 

[Jack Straw]

Totally shocked that the FDA gave this device Breakthrough Device designation which is essentially Fast Track designation.

All of the tinnitus devices were denied this even though they are the first devices to successfully treat it.

Perhaps this has serious potential and the FDA recognizes that, OR Elon has a shit load of money haha.

 

[PauloZ]

Perhaps this has serious potential and the FDA recognizes that, OR Elon has a shit load of money haha.

Or both

 

[Sevv]

OR Elon has a shit load of money haha.

Elon has a shitload of money.

And maybe because Neuralink is a device, not a medication?

 

[tommyd87]

Totally shocked that the FDA gave this device Breakthrough Device designation which is essentially Fast Track designation.

All of the tinnitus devices were denied this even though they are the first devices to successfully treat it.

Perhaps this has serious potential and the FDA recognizes that, OR Elon has a shit load of money haha.

I think that the FDA would have judged it on its merits much the same as it does with any other potential treatment or medication that it is presented with. Obviously this means that there will be some potential with this in some form. Otherwise there would have been no way that this would have been allowed to proceed.

 

[WillBeNimble]

Totally shocked that the FDA gave this device Breakthrough Device designation which is essentially Fast Track designation.

All of the tinnitus devices were denied this even though they are the first devices to successfully treat it.

Perhaps this has serious potential and the FDA recognizes that, OR Elon has a shit load of money haha.

It has more potential than just tinnitus, with possibly being able to restore movement to spinal injuries. That's more the reason this was given Fast Track, I feel. That, and it has enormous potential for actual brain research.

 

[d'Wooluf]

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...mplants-are-close-to-ready-for-human-testing/

 

[FGG]

Unless I'm missing something (I just admit I read write ups and didn't watch), this seems only diagnostic at this point and not therapeutic.

 

[d'Wooluf]

Unless I'm missing something (I just admit I read write ups and didn't watch), this seems only diagnostic at this point and not therapeutic.

I think they're just going to develop it and wait for a use to come along. You can do that when you're a billionaire.

 

[asey20]

Unless I'm missing something (I just admit I read write ups and didn't watch), this seems only diagnostic at this point and not therapeutic.

It works the same way as DBS. He showed a video that showed neurons lighting up, in the pigs, when electricity was sent to one of the 1024 channels in that area of the brain.

He also mentioned specifically hearing loss and blindness as conditions that could be treated with this device. Hearing loss was pretty up there on the list of conditions to be treated and I'm sure this is no coincidence. He is definitely aware of hearing issues and tinnitus considering his girlfriend/wife, Grimes, had/has tinnitus.

Also, it makes sense that they would tackle easier issues to cure first. There's a large leap to be made in restoring function for patients with broken spinal cords, which seems to be Neuralink's end goal. In other words, it's actually really good that hearing issues is one first things Neuralink will likely try to treat.

I also read an article today refering to Neuralink and saying how there is already a treatment for hearing loss which, you guessed it, was referring to cochlear implants.

It is well known that cochlear implants and DBS have shown potential to treat/cure tinnitus, so it seems like Neuralink is right on track as well.

If you guys think that this device is a joke then think again. Brain implants are becoming more and more common with 200'000 people already having them worldwide. There zfd also a lot more of these biotech companies coming out.

Musk is a billionaire and is dedicated to backing his projects using his own money. I'm also not surprised he gained FDA breakthrough device designation. He has borrowed money from the US government before and paid them with interest quickly. Furthermore, they laid out a lot of impressive details in the update. I'm sure the FDA took notice of this.

Even if you guys aren't keen on getting a brain implant, then this is still good news. All of the data that can be collected from this device after it is implanted in a tinnitus patient could lead to other cures for tinnitus.

 

[Emgee]

Just something I found interesting: for anyone on Twitter, search "neuralink tinnitus" and check out the top or latest results.

So many people are tweeting both at the Neuralink company page and Elon Musk's personal page. The search results are filled with people asking if the brain implants will help tinnitus.

 

[tarmaced]

This is the man who made the viable electric car company. Then made it self driving. Commercially viable without subsidies.

Who then got NASA to apologise to his company because they favoured Boeing. And landed the rockets on their backside.

I am an Engineer, so possibly biased... but I like this man and feel good that his next pet project is up our street.

Make no mistake though. The change to society will not come as the result of making the crippled walk or the blind see, or curing tinnitus, but from everyone else gaining a tiny bit of efficiency. This is why he has a focus on the mass market - because there will be one. 2 extra hours of life a day due to better / more optimised sleep patterns? Or improved concentration all day? Well - that will be interesting.

An army where every trooper has the mental endurance and physical will of a super-soldier without the use of drugs.

This may be the first way that you can actually effectively get a higher IQ - not by improved processing speed, but through improved efficiency.

Having said that I wouldn't be an early adopter. But I am not against it. Mainly I just have a habit of breaking smartphones.

 

[Jack Straw]

This is the man who made the viable electric car company. Then made it self driving. Commercially viable without subsidies.

Who then got NASA to apologise to his company because they favoured Boeing. And landed the rockets on their backside.

I am an Engineer, so possibly biased... but I like this man and feel good that his next pet project is up our street.

Make no mistake though. The change to society will not come as the result of making the crippled walk or the blind see, or curing tinnitus, but from everyone else gaining a tiny bit of efficiency. This is why he has a focus on the mass market - because there will be one. 2 extra hours of life a day due to better / more optimised sleep patterns? Or improved concentration all day? Well - that will be interesting.

An army where every trooper has the mental endurance and physical will of a super-soldier without the use of drugs.

This may be the first way that you can actually effectively get a higher IQ - not by improved processing speed, but through improved efficiency.

Having said that I wouldn't be an early adopter. But I am not against it. Mainly I just have a habit of breaking smartphones.

I agree that he is someone in the mainstream who does things outside of the box. I do truly feel that if anyone is going to do it, it is going to be him.

One of the main reasons I feel this is because for him, money is not an obstacle. He can throw more money at this than any researcher currently researching tinnitus and hearing loss.

Another reason is that he is going directly to the source of the problem, the brain, in order to fix it. This is very different than the medication and external devices that we currently see.

My money is on Elon Musk that at some point he will be the one to truly treat tinnitus and hearing loss.

 

[Pero1234]

This slide reminds me of the box of the old pc game Leisure Suit Larry. As with the popular King's Quest Series it said in the corner of the box:

1.000.000 copies sold!!!

But in Larry's case there was some fine print before that:

"Al Lowe (the creator) hopes this game one day ends up with... "

1.000.000 copies sold!!!!

I suppose Elon Musk also hopes that one day Neurolink may prove useful to help combat tinnitus. He has nothing more at this point.

 

[GlennS]

Beware overly eager hero-worship. I used to look up to Musk but he is a curious mixture of good and bad qualities. The bad qualities too often compromise his work. There is a reason things are done a certain way. Bucking from tradition can be brave or it can be foolhardy. There are several dead autopilot drivers that I feel Musk is personally responsible for and the system for whatever reason will not hold him accountable. Expect more as autopilot lulls people into more and more of a false sense of security.

 

[NewLionel]

Beware overly eager hero-worship. I used to look up to Musk but he is a curious mixture of good and bad qualities. The bad qualities too often compromise his work. There is a reason things are done a certain way. Bucking from tradition can be brave or it can be foolhardy. There are several dead autopilot drivers that I feel Musk is personally responsible for and the system for whatever reason will not hold him accountable. Expect more as autopilot lulls people into more and more of a false sense of security.

I heard him on Joe Rogan talking about elderly COVID-19 deaths. He said they should be counted in loss of hours and not full lives. I think he might lack empathy.

 

[GlennS]

I heard him on Joe Rogan talking about elderly COVID-19 deaths. He said they should be counted in loss of hours and not full lives. I think he might lack empathy.

He absolutely lacks empathy. He is the nerdy Donald Trump. It just so happens that his objectives are mostly beneficial for society (unlike Trump) but he doesn't seem to care about the cost to get us there.

 

[Nick M]

In case you guys haven't seen this yet:



I have much more faith in someone like Elon developing something that could help with tinnitus than any pharma or investor who is trying to make a quick buck based on some tinnitus research. This to me looks very promising for the fact that they actually insert probes into your brain. Perhaps it would then be possible to stimulate parts of the brain to break the synchrony that amplifies the tinnitus to where it's perceived.

Who knows, all I know is that I'm sure there's more promise in this than a tone generator

 

[tommyd87]

I have much more faith in someone like Elon developing something that could help with tinnitus than any pharma or investor who is trying to make a quick buck based on some tinnitus research. This to me looks very promising for the fact that they actually insert probes into your brain. Perhaps it would then be possible to stimulate parts of the brain to break the synchrony that amplifies the tinnitus to where it's perceived.

Who knows, all I know is that I'm sure there's more promise in this than a tone generator

I have had more faith in drug treatments than this chip. Considering the information and what we know, it is not only very probable that successful drug treatment will do the same task that this will do but it will also do it much more less invasively and be quite a lot less risky than the chip would be.

By looking at what the pharma companies are doing, it seems that they too are very interested in providing a positive outcome(s) for patients moreso than looking to make a quick dollar. I definitely think that Frequency Therapeutics and Hough Ear Institute have treatment benefit as the major priority.

 

[Sevv]

I have had more faith in drug treatments than this chip. Considering the information and what we know, it is not only very probable that successful drug treatment will do the same task that this will do but it will also do it much more less invasively and be quite a lot less risky than the chip would be.

By looking at what the pharma companies are doing, it seems that they too are very interested in providing a positive outcome(s) for patients moreso than looking to make a quick dollar. I definitely think that Frequency Therapeutics and Hough Ear Institute have treatment benefit as the major priority.

Having more options never hurts. My relief currently is that if I get screwed up again and have another worsening, I can always go for deep brain stimulation (even if there's like a 1-5% chance of something going seriously wrong).

 

[tommyd87]

Having more options never hurts. My relief currently is that if I get screwed up again and have another worsening, I can always go for deep brain stimulation (even if there's like a 1-5% chance of something going seriously wrong).

I definitely don't disagree. I think that there might be a lot of potential candidates who will choose to only use this option as a last resort.

 

[Mentos]

Having more options never hurts. My relief currently is that if I get screwed up again and have another worsening, I can always go for deep brain stimulation (even if there's like a 1-5% chance of something going seriously wrong).

DBS is neither approved for tinnitus nor commercially available yet, or am I wrong?

 

[Christiaan]

DBS is neither approved for tinnitus nor commercially available yet, or am I wrong?

It will take some years before researchers find the sweet spot (which part of the brain ought to be stimulated by DBS). University Maastricht is currently studying the Caudate Nucleus for stimulation and the University of Grenoble is focusing on the parieto-insular region. Trials concerning these studies will start soon. It will take about 3 years before we know if it is effective on tinnitus and if so, available for commercial use.