The U.S. Department of Transportation said yesterday that it is investigating Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface company Neuralink for possibly illegally transporting dangerous pathogens.
Neuralink
The animal welfare advocacy group Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) wrote to U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg earlier yesterday to alert Buttigieg to the records they obtained on the incident. Documents show that Neuralink’s implants removed from monkey brains were packaged and shipped unsafely and that the implants may have carried infectious diseases in violation of federal law.
A U.S. Department of Transportation spokesman said the department takes PCRM’s allegations “very seriously. “We are conducting an investigation to ensure that Neuralink is in full compliance with federal regulations and protecting their employees and the public from potentially dangerous pathogens.” the spokesperson said.
This is the latest federal investigation that Neuralink has been subjected to. The media reported last December that Neuralink was under investigation by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for alleged animal welfare violations. Inside Neuralink, employees have complained that the company’s animal experiments were rushed and caused unnecessary suffering and death. Elon Musk and Neuralink have not yet commented.
