Elon Musk’s brain chip firm, Neuralink, is facing a torrent of animal abuse allegations. The company’s goal is to build an interface that allows humans to control electrical gadgets using their brainwaves.
On Monday, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) filed a new complaint with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) (USDA). Musk’s organization and its colleagues at the University of California, Davis were charged by the PCRM of inflicting “severe agony” on test victims. According to the complaint, the participants, who were primarily monkeys, “had their brains mutilated in shoddy experiments and were left to suffer and die.”
Neuralink reportedly used a substance called “BioGlue” to mutilate the monkeys’ brains, according to PCRM. The case goes on to detail how BioGlue caused the animals to suffer from devastating psychological side effects, including self-mutilation such as pulling off their own fingers.
“Animals at Neuralink are respected and honored by our team,” Neuralink wrote on its Twitter account. “Without proper context, information from medical records and study data can be misleading.”
The company responded further in a lengthy blog post, where it broke down its experimentation process and denied the accusations. The post claimed animals were always carefully observed, and that a vast team of “veterinarians, veterinary technicians, behaviorists, enrichment technicians, and animal care specialists who provide positive reinforcement training and around the clock care for our animals” were employed.
Animals at Neuralink are respected and honored by our team. Without proper context, information from medical records and study data can be misleading. In this blog post, we want to provide an accurate statement of Neuralink’s commitment to animal welfare. https://t.co/Lc9P3URorF
— Neuralink (@neuralink) February 14, 2022