Inserting microchips into human brains was once the stuff of science fiction but is now reality thanks to companies like Elon Musk’s Neuralink. But what are the pros and cons of having Musk tech inside our heads?

In this episode, our host David gets cerebral with Dr Sarah Hellewell, a Neurotrauma Research Fellow at Curtin University and the Perron Institute. Together, they unpack how human augmentation tech like Neuralink works, and how it can help to improve the quality of life for people with brain injuries or neurological conditions. They also explore the ethics of merging ‘mind with machine’.

Understanding brain computer interfaces (BCI) [01:02]
Decoding thoughts into actions [04:45]
BCI can change lives [09:12]
Ethical implications of BCI tech [14:15]
The future of BCI in everyday life [12:36]

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Dr Sarah Hellewell

Sarah is a Senior Research Fellow in Neurotrauma at Curtin University and the Perron Institute. Her research incorporates both clinical and preclinical research programs spanning the spectrum of neurodegeneration and brain injury severity, enabling her to rapidly identify clinical problems and translate “bedside to bench” and back again.

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Transcript

Read the transcript: https://thefutureof.simplecast.com/episodes/neuro-tech/transcript

Behind the scenes

Host: David Karsten
Content creators: Caitlin Crowley and Zoe Taylor
Producer: Emilia Jolakoska
Executive producer: Natasha Weeks and Anita Shore

First Nations Acknowledgement

Curtin University acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the First Peoples of this place we call Australia, and the First Nations peoples connected with our global campuses. We are committed to working in partnership with Custodians and Owners to strengthen and embed First Nations’ voices and perspectives in our decision-making, now and into the future.

Music

OKAY by 13ounce Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Music promoted by Audio Library.

Curtin University supports academic freedom of speech. The views expressed in The Future Of podcast may not reflect those of Curtin University.

Neuro Tech: Neuralink, brain chips, human augmentation