Elon Musk's brain implant company, Neuralink, is under investigation over allegations it unsafely packaged and transported materials with infectious pathogens at research facilities at the University of California Davis.
Public records show people working for Neuralink appear to have transported materials that may have been contaminated with antibiotic-resistant pathogens such as Staphylococcus and Klebsiella, according to a Feb. 9 letter from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine to the Transportation Department. Materials may have also been contaminated with Corynebacterium ulcerans, which is known to circulate among rhesus macaques and is a recognized "emerging human pathogen."
A spokesperson for the Transportation Department told The Verge in a Feb. 9 report that an investigation is underway.
According to the letter, Neuralink may have failed to provide the required safety training for handling the materials.
Neuralink aims to help people with spinal cord injuries. While Mr. Musk had the goal of testing the chip in humans, pending FDA approval, these allegations could push that timeline.
Meanwhile, Synchron, another company developing a brain implant, began human trials in May. The company's Stentrode device has the FDA's investigational device exemption.