According to reports, Neuralink is facing a federal probe over the treatment of animals used in its experiments. The Animal Welfare Act is the focus of a recent probe by the USDA inspector general. The USDA inspector general's spokesman wouldn't comment on the report.
A range of concerns over animal welfare were raised in interviews with more than 20 current and former Neuralink employees. In one experiment, 25 out of 60 pigs had the wrong size of device installed as part of a study, while two separate pigs had devices installed on the wrong vertebra, one of which had to be euthanized.
Staffers are told to meet deadlines.
Neuralink wants to develop ways for the human brain to interface with computers to help treat a range of neurological conditions. The company has made a number of public demonstrations of its technology being used by animals, including showing a monkey playing a game with its brain and another using an implant.
Animals used in scientific tests are often killed so that their autopsies can provide further data. Testing mistakes can lead to excess deaths, according to current and former Neuralink employees. They can affect the data's accuracy. Neuralink has killed over 1500 animals.
There is no evidence of wrongdoing, but employees have raised concerns that Musk's drive for quick progress has created an environment filled with under-prepared and over- stressed staffers. Musk told staff to imagine they had a bomb strapped to their heads in order to get them to work quicker. The CEO wrote in an email that we are not moving fast enough. I think it is driving me crazy.
Musk believes that Neuralink could start human trials in the near future. At a recent event, the CEO of the two companies said that he was going to put the device in a human in six months. Musk said he wanted to begin human trials in 2020.
Neuralink has been criticized for its treatment of animals before. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which is against the use of animals in medical experiments, accused the University of California of treating monkeys inhumanely in a study funded by Neuralink. Neuralink said that the facilities and care at UC Davis met federal standards.
Neuralink did not reply to the request. The entire report is worth a read.
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