Lauren Goode: Yeah, I think it’s going to be really good.
Michael Heat: Yeah.
Lauren Goode: And that also means that Katie still has time to run wired, which is one thing she does on the side.
Michael Heat: I thought you were going to say to run nine miles a day.
Lauren Goode: That too. She also runs, short, short. But yes, no, we are there, just you and I in the office of San Francisco dealing with fog. It is very misty at this time of the year. People don’t think that when they think of California, but it is. And is it just me and you?
Michael Heat: No, we have a guest. We have Emily Mullen in the series.
Lauren Goode: You are kidding.
Michael Heat: No, we’re going to bring her in one minute.
Lauren Goode: Let’s do it.
Michael Heat: It’s wired Strange valleyA show on people, the power and the influence of Silicon Valley. Today, we are talking about brain computer interfaces. They are also known as cerebral-machine interfaces or simply bcis to be short. But what you call them are fairly incredible systems that allow direct communication between the brain and a digital device like a computer or a phone. People who have had a surgically implanted BCI can use their thoughts as orders to ensure that the machines perform different tasks. There is currently an ongoing race in Silicon Valley to build a model that will stand out from the others. And among the pre-runners, there is Neuralink by Elon Musk, and a startup based in New York called Synchron. We are going to dive why competition warms between these two companies and what are the promises and limitations behind this futuristic technology. I am Michael Calore, director of technology and consumer culture here at Wired.
Lauren Goode: I am Lauren Goode. I am the main correspondent at Wired.
Michael Heat: We are spoiled positively today to have a guest in the show that has largely reported brain interfaces. Emily Mullin of Wired.
Emily Mullin: Good morning.
Lauren Goode: Emily, do you still have a cerebral implant?
Emily Mullin: No I don’t have.
Lauren Goode: Well, really, how far are you engaged in the bit?
Emily Mullin: I don’t want brain implantation. No, thank you.
Michael Heat: Before diving into Bcis, I would like to know what is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of brain-machine interactions, Lauren? I mean, for example, I think of Robocop, the original of Paul Verhoeven 1987, where it is just the Robocop, it’s just his head and his torso, then his members and all his race and his walking are controlled by a computer that is established in his brain.
Lauren Goode: I have never seen Robocop.
Michael Heat: Oh, it’s such a good movie.
Lauren Goode: So I can’t comment on this. What do I think, what do I think? Well, this is a much more hidden answer, but I think of all these promises that are made around AI and health care and I wonder if AI ends up being the kind of connective tissue between all that that makes it really viable. I would never want one, because it looks like a needs based on needs, not something you should just pierce a hole in your brain and to have fun. But if you arrive at the point where you need it, I hope that technology is in place to help you live aspects of your life that you could not otherwise live.
