'And their jaws drop...': First Neuralink patient shares how he draws using just his mind

The first human whose brain was implanted with Elon Musk's Neuralink chip is showing off more skills. Noland Arbaugh, from Arizona, says he can draw using just his mind, and also depicted the amazing feat. A diving accident left him paralysed below the shoulders in 2016. That same year, US neurotechnology firm Neuralink was launched. However, the first human tests were only allowed in 2023, and in January 2024, Noland became the first person to receive the brain chip implant. The brain-computer interface (BCI) chip is extremely small.

Entrepreneur and author of Neuraleap: HOW BCI will redefine communication, business and governance, Velco Dar, talked to Noland recently and drew some lines with him. He shared the experience on X, saying he used a computer trackpad to draw on a shared canvas, while Noland controlled the cursor with his brain for the same.

"Last week I spoke to Noland Arbaugh @ModdedQuad about his journey & his views on a BCI future. Then we drew some lines together on a shared canvas: him controlling the cursor using his thoughts (via @neuralink ), and me - the old school way, using a computer trackpad," Dar wrote.

Noland said in the interview that he is "not artistic at all". But he demonstrated how he uses the N1 chip to draw digital photos on screen. He controlled the cursor with his mind, and drew flowers, the sun and a house. Dar noted that it was incredible to see Noland move something using just his mind. Noland said that he sometimes forgets that what he does with his brain is not something people are used to seeing. “I forget that people haven’t seen this constantly. I think, 'Oh yeah, this is just my life, this is how I use it and what I do with it.'”

He added, “I use it around people who’ve never seen it before, and their jaws drop.” Noland said that while trying to move the cursor, he imagines certain scenarios in his mind. He told Dar that he "clicks and drags" the cursor in his mind. Other actions he thinks about include "flicking his thumb out to the left, while the other is pinky out to the right." Earlier, Noland had shown himself playing chess, video games and learning languages.