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Musk's Neuralink Says Second Trial Implant Went Well, No Thread Retraction Issue

FILE PHOTO: Neuralink logo and Elon Musk photo are seen in this illustration taken, December 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Neuralink logo and Elon Musk photo are seen in this illustration taken, December 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Musk's Neuralink Says Second Trial Implant Went Well, No Thread Retraction Issue

FILE PHOTO: Neuralink logo and Elon Musk photo are seen in this illustration taken, December 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Neuralink logo and Elon Musk photo are seen in this illustration taken, December 19, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Elon Musk's brain technology startup Neuralink said its implant, designed to allow paralyzed patients to use digital devices by thinking alone, is working well in a second trial patient.
The company said the patient, identified as Alex, did not face issues of "thread retraction", unlike Noland Arbaugh, Neuralink's first patient who received the implant in January, Reuters reported.
The tiny wires of the implant retracted post surgery for Arbaugh, resulting in a sharp reduction in the electrodes that could measure brain signals. The threads have stabilized for Arbaugh, Neuralink said.
Reuters had reported Neuralink was aware of this issue from its animal trials.
The company said on Wednesday it implemented measures such as reduction in the motion of the brain during surgery as well as limiting the gap between the implant and the surface of the brain to prevent similar issues in its second patient.
Neuralink is in the process of testing its device, which is intended to help people with spinal cord injuries. The device has allowed the first patient to play video games, browse the internet, post on social media and move a cursor on his laptop.
Last month, the company successfully implanted the device in the second patient, who has been using the device to play video games and learn how to design 3D objects.

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China Curbs Exports of Key Chipmaking Components to US

The flag of China is placed next to the elements of Gallium and Germanium on a periodic table, in this illustration picture taken on July 6, 2023. (Reuters)
The flag of China is placed next to the elements of Gallium and Germanium on a periodic table, in this illustration picture taken on July 6, 2023. (Reuters)
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China Curbs Exports of Key Chipmaking Components to US

The flag of China is placed next to the elements of Gallium and Germanium on a periodic table, in this illustration picture taken on July 6, 2023. (Reuters)
The flag of China is placed next to the elements of Gallium and Germanium on a periodic table, in this illustration picture taken on July 6, 2023. (Reuters)

Beijing said Tuesday it would restrict exports to the United States of some key components in making semiconductors, after Washington announced curbs targeting China's ability to make advanced chips.

Among the materials banned from export are metals gallium, antimony and germanium, Beijing's commerce ministry said in a statement that cited "national security" concerns.

Exports of graphite, another key component, will also be subject to "stricter reviews of end-users and end-uses", the ministry said.

"To safeguard national security interests and fulfill international obligations such as non-proliferation, China has decided to strengthen export controls on relevant dual-use items to the United States," Beijing said.

"Any organization or individual in any country or region violating the relevant regulations will be held accountable according to the law," it added.

In its own latest curbs, Washington on Monday announced restrictions on sales, without additional permission, to 140 companies including Chinese chip firms Piotech and SiCarrier.

They also impact Naura Technology Group, which makes chip production equipment, according to the US Commerce Department.

The move expands Washington's efforts to curb exports of state-of-the-art chips to China, which can be used in advanced weapons systems and artificial intelligence.

The new US rules also include controls on two dozen types of chip-making equipment and three kinds of software tools for developing or producing semiconductors.

Beijing swiftly vowed to defend its interests, saying the United States "abuses export control measures" and has "hindered normal economic and trade exchanges".

- 'Weaponized' trade -

And on Tuesday, China said Washington had "politicized and weaponized economic, trade and technological issues" as it unveiled its own export curbs.

The moves also restrict the exports of "dual-use items to United States military users or for military purposes", Beijing said.

China accounts for 94 percent of the world's production of gallium -- used in integrated circuits, LEDs and photovoltaic panels -- according to a report by the European Union published this year.

For germanium, essential for fiber optics and infrared, China makes up 83 percent of production.

Beijing last year had already tightened restrictions on exporters of the metals, requiring them to provide information on the final recipient and give details about their end use.

But the curbs unveiled Tuesday now ban them outright.

It had also previously restricted curbs on exports of certain types of graphite --also key to making batteries for electric vehicles.

"The move is clearly a retaliatory strike at the US," Dylan Loh, an assistant professor at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, told AFP.

"It drives home an important point which is that China is not completely passive (and) there are some cards it can play and hit the US with as well with regards to chips," Loh added.

These "back and forth curbs" could create supply chain disruption, as well as inflationary pressures, should they affect trade for third parties, said Chong Ja Ian, an associate professor of political science from the National University of Singapore.

But while the metals play critical roles in high-tech industries, they are upstream in the supply chain, which means their immediate impact on production "is limited", Brady Wang, associate director at technology market research firm Counterpoint, told AFP.

"As the US-China trade tensions have persisted for some time, many intermediary manufacturers in the supply chain have been stockpiling these materials," Wang added.