Neuralink may have transported pathogens illegally, animal advocates say

An animal welfare organization said on Thursday (9) it plans to ask a US government agency to investigate Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain implant company, over suspicion that, according to the group, the company has illegally transported dangerous pathogens.

The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) said in a letter to the US Department of Transportation shared with Reuters that it obtained emails and other documents suggesting unsafe packaging and movement of implants removed from monkey brains. Such equipment could have transmitted infectious diseases, violating US federal law, the PCRM said.

The letter states that records the group obtained show cases of pathogens, such as antibiotic-resistant staph and type B herpes virus, that may have been transported without adequate containment measures.

The incidents involving possible violations of regulations for transporting hazardous materials happened in 2019, when Neuralink enlisted the University of California to help run its primate experiments, according to documents cited by the committee.

Although Neuralink’s partnership with UC ended in 2020, PCRM said the company continues to employ the neurosurgeon who oversaw the experiments, and other staff involved may also still be employed.

Representatives for Neuralink, including Musk, and the Department of Transportation declined to comment. A UC spokesperson said only that the university complies with all biohazard and laboratory safety regulations.

The PCRM, which opposes the use of animals in medical research, did not identify any harm as a result of these incidents, but said Neuralink’s actions “could pose a serious and ongoing risk to public health”.

The group said it has also found instances that appear to describe UC officials calling for immediate biohazard training for Neuralink employees following incidents that raised contamination concerns. On one occasion, in April 2019, an employee wrote in an email stating that the university’s primate center is “at risk” from “monkey-contaminated hardware”.

“This is an exposure for anyone who comes into contact with contaminated explanted hardware and we are making a big deal about it because we are concerned about human safety,” wrote the official, whose name was removed from the records.

During its partnership with UC Davis, Neuralink became frustrated with the “slow pace” of testing on primates, employees and former employees of the company told Reuters, and has since built extensive in-house animal testing facilities. The company, however, missed the deadlines set by Musk to start human trials. Pressure on the research team to progress contributed to errors that plagued some experiments, Reuters reported.