Musk’s Neuralink Raises $650M to Launch Brain Chip Trials — Betting Big on Mind-Control Tech

Picture this: a person with severe paralysis moves a computer cursor, plays video games, or posts on social media, just by thinking. Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) has been a developing field since the 1970s. However, in recent years, it has made significant progress, and today, Elon Musk’s brain-tech startup Neuralink is making it a reality. On Monday, the company announced it has raised $650 million in fresh funding as it begins clinical trials of its brain-computer interface implant in three countries.

The new round, one of the company’s largest yet, brings together major investors such as ARK Invest, Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, and QIA. Neuralink says the money will help bring its implant technology to more patients and continue advancing its mission to restore independence to people with severe disabilities.

N1 Receives a “Breakthrough Device” Designation

Neuralink’s flagship device, called the N1 or “Telepathy,” is a tiny coin-sized implant equipped with a chip that decodes brain signals and wirelessly transmits them to computers or smartphones. Five patients with severe paralysis are already testing it, using the implant to interact with devices entirely by thought. The chip is surgically implanted by a custom-built robot, ensuring precise placement of its 1,024 ultra-thin electrodes.

The technology has caught the attention of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has awarded Neuralink’s speech restoration device a “Breakthrough Device” designation. The same tag was granted last year for its vision-restoring product. The program is designed to expedite the development and approval of cutting-edge medical devices that address severe medical conditions.

Musk, who recently stepped away from his advisory role in the Trump administration, says he’s refocusing on his companies—including Neuralink, Tesla (TSLA), SpaceX, xAI, and X (formerly Twitter). Meanwhile, his AI company xAI is also seeking a $5 billion debt deal and aiming for a $113 billion valuation, according to media reports.

Valued at around $9 billion before this latest funding, Neuralink is now closer than ever to reshaping how humans and machines interact. For patients with severe conditions, it could be life-changing. For investors, it’s a high-risk, high-reward bet on a frontier technology with the potential to transform healthcare, computing, and even human-machine interaction. Neuralink’s progress offers a rare early-stage window into a market that could redefine what’s possible in both medicine and tech.

Is TSLA Stock a Buy?

As Neuralink is still a privately owned company, we went for Musk’s publicly traded, and mostly known, company – Tesla – for an analysts’ forecast. Unsurprisingly, Tesla is rated a Hold, with an average TSLA stock price target of $282.70. This implies a 17.51% downside.