Sam Altman Allegedly Initiates Competing Brain-chip Venture Against Musk's Neuralink
Merge Labs, a new brain-computer interface (BCI) startup co-founded by Sam Altman and Alex Blania, is seeking to raise $250 million at a valuation of around $850 million, with a significant portion of the funding expected to come from OpenAI's Startup Fund.
Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, will not be involved in Merge Labs' day-to-day operations nor investing personal funds. In contrast, Elon Musk, the founder of Neuralink, remains actively involved in the day-to-day operations of his company.
Merge Labs' primary focus is on developing high-bandwidth neural implants with an emphasis on less invasive technologies compared to Neuralink. The company aims to integrate human cognition directly with AI and extend applications beyond medical use into broader human-computer merging.
Neuralink, founded in 2016, has a head start in the development of BCIs. It has already received approvals for clinical trials and has implanted chips in at least three patients with spinal cord injuries or ALS. Neuralink's approach uses more invasive implants and has demonstrated tangible clinical progress.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Neuralink breakthrough device designations for its technology aimed at helping people with speech and vision impairments.
In a recent post, Altman introduced the concept of a "Gentle Singularity," suggesting a breakthrough in high-bandwidth brain-computer interfaces could be imminent. This vision aligns with Altman's 2017 blog post, where he discussed "the merge," a predicted moment when humans and machines would merge into one.
The primary goal of Merge Labs' devices is to allow humans to control digital devices with their thoughts, similar to Neuralink's ambitions. However, Merge Labs positions itself philosophically and strategically around the idea of "the merge," the theoretical convergence of human and machine consciousness.
This competition between Merge Labs and Neuralink reflects a broader rivalry between Altman and Musk in frontier technologies. Recently, Musk and Altman exchanged criticisms on X regarding OpenAI's relationship with Apple and its presence in the App Store.
| Aspect | Merge Labs | Neuralink | |----------------------|----------------------------------|---------------------------------| | Founders | Sam Altman, Alex Blania | Elon Musk | | Valuation | ~$850 million | ~$9 billion | | Funding sought | $250 million (raising) | $600 million Series E completed | | Operational role | Altman no day-to-day involvement | Musk active founder | | Technology focus | Less invasive, AI-integrated neural implants | More invasive implants, clinical trials ongoing | | Development stage| Early stage, pre-human trials | Human trials with paralyzed patients | | Philosophy | Human-AI merge ("the merge") | Brain-computer interface to aid disabilities and enable human enhancement |
As Merge Labs and Neuralink continue to develop their BCIs, the race for technological advancement in this field promises to be an exciting one.
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