China implants first commercial brain-computer interface

Chinese surgeons at Huashan Hospital implanted a coin-sized brain chip into a patient with impaired hand mobility from a spinal cord injury sustained in a car accident a decade ago. The procedure, performed on Monday and announced by the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, captured stable epidural brain signals. The NEO device, developed by Neuracle Medical Technology, reads neural signals and translates them into hand movements without penetrating brain tissue. It became the world's first commercially prescribed BCI after receiving approval from China's National Medical Products Administration on March 13, moving beyond laboratories and clinical trials. Within four months of clearance, NEO had begun production, hospital introductions, patient screening, and inclusion in local commercial health insurance. The implant underscores China's bid to lead the global neurotechnology race against Elon Musk's Neuralink.