Neuralink: Elon Musk promises to "cure" autism, but some critics see it rather as the "suicide" of the human mind

Last July, Elon Musk presented the latest advances in the development of Neuralink, his project to create a brain-computer interface by using sensors capable of reading our mind that would be implanted by "sewing" microscopic wires in our brain.

Since then, the company (which has more than doubled its workforce since August, having gone from 20 to 45 employees) had maintained a low media profile, especially when compared to other companies led by the South African billionaire.

However, Musk stands out for its ease in generating headlines, whether or not there are technological advances that justify them. On this occasion, the stir was caused by his appearance in the Lex Fridman podcast on Artificial Intelligence, during which he said that Neuralink can "cure many diseases related to the brain."

Musk aims to cure the incurable

Nothing new up there: it is not the first time he promises that his product could be of help to people suffering from schizophrenia or Alzheimer's syndrome. However, this time has included among these diseases

"Anything, such as autism or memory loss [...] parents who can't remember their children's names, and that kind of thing".

Musk tried to explain in that part of the conversation possible ways in which Neuralink could have a "positive impact on the world" ... but the inclusion of autism as a "disease" has caused controversy. The US Center for Disease Control It is not considered a disease, but "a developmental disability that can cause social and communicative impacts and behavioural problems."

"The experience of each person with autism is totally unique and in the same way there is no single 'autism,' there is no 'cure' [for it]," explains Thomas W. Frazier, scientific director of Autism Speaks in Mashable. The consensus among the medical community is that it must be addressed as part of the identity of the person and not as a problem that must be "solved."

On the other hand, although it is true that nowadays, brain implants are investigated that electrically stimulate specific regions of the brain to treat Alzheimer's, that has little to do with the concept of the brain-computer interface.

It wouldn't be the first time Musk doesn't think what he says

The truth is that having not further developed his statements, it cannot even be ruled out that Musk has misunderstood the concept of 'autism', or that he did not mention it simply because it was the first disorder related to the mind that came to mind.

This is not the first time (nor would we bet it was the last time) that Musk does not think well of statements or a publication on a social network. Recall that he had to resign as president of Tesla following a tweet written on impulse, or the problems generated in his relationship with NASA who smoked marijuana during the performance of another podcast. And that is not to mention the controversial constants for their claims about the ability of self-driving of Tesla.

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Beware: a mind fused with AI could stop being a mind

However, despite their efforts to highlight the "positive impacts" of Nueralink, voices are raised that claim that Musk does not know what he is doing with Neuralink (and this goes well beyond an unnecessary mention of autism).

Recall that, beyond promises about mental illness, and the possibility of facilitating our interaction with computers, Musk's long-term plans for Neuralink are motivated by the principle "if you can't with your enemy, join him" with the one that tries to avoid that our species is relegated in the future by the AI:

"This is going to sound pretty weird, but ultimately, we will be able to establish a symbiotic relationship with artificial intelligence."

Susan Schneider, professor of cognitive science, director of the research group 'AI, Mind and Society' of the University of Connecticut, and author of the book 'Artificial You: AI and the Future of Your Mind', believes that this is a very bad idea.

Poor level 'suicide', specifically, because it favours that over time transhumanist ideas can be disseminated that vindicate the idea that, already having a digital copy of our brain patterns and memories, the brain would become only "redundant" and expendable meat.

That could lead, according to Schneider, to a rapid suicide (by the elimination of the biological brain) or to a slow one (by substitution of specific parts of the brain by AI components, until it takes control of it and, over time, the mind human will cease to exist. According to Schneider,

"The result is clear. We must be sceptical of any suggestion that humans can merge with AI."