Elon Musk’s brain tech startup Neuralink raises $650 million in Series E funding

Elon Musk’s brain-interface startup Neuralink just raised $650 million in fresh funding, the company announced Monday.

Backers include ARK Invest, Founders Fund, Sequoia Capital, Thrive Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Neuralink says the new cash will support efforts to get its brain chip into the hands—or rather, heads—of more patients and help build devices that, in the company’s words, “deepen the connection between biological and artificial intelligence.”

“This funding helps us bring our technology to more people—restoring independence for those with unmet medical needs and pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with brain interfaces,” Neuralink said in a blog post.

Bloomberg reported back in April that Neuralink was planning to raise about $500 million in new funding, with a pre-money valuation of $8.5 billion, to support the expansion of its brain-computer interface technology.

Neuralink is working on what’s known as a brain-computer interface (BCI), which allows brain activity to control external devices. It’s an area that has seen decades of research, but startups are now pushing it beyond academic labs and into human trials.

The company’s first product, Telepathy, uses 64 ultra-thin threads implanted directly into the brain. These threads—thinner than a strand of hair—contain 1,024 electrodes that capture neural signals. The idea is to give people with severe paralysis the ability to interact with computers or physical devices using only their thoughts.

So far, five people have received the implant. Neuralink says these patients can already control both digital and physical tech using their minds. The company is currently running four clinical trials focused on Telepathy, CNBC reported.

It’s a competitive space. Companies like Synchron, Paradromics, and Precision Neuroscience are also developing BCI systems. On the same day Neuralink announced its raise, Paradromics revealed it had implanted its device in a human for the first time.

While Neuralink hasn’t detailed what new devices it’s working on, Musk has been vocal about the long-term vision. He’s even said he’d be open to getting the chip himself.

One future device Musk has frequently promoted is called Blindsight, which is aimed at restoring vision for people who are blind. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted it “Breakthrough Device” status, a label reserved for innovations that could significantly improve treatment for serious conditions.

Musk claimed in a post last September that Blindsight could even help people who’ve lost both eyes and their optic nerves see again.

That said, there’s still a lot to prove. Turning Neuralink’s vision into something widely available will take time—and a lot more testing.