I had a very productive conversation with "Elon Musk" about Neuralink. I was surprised it was able to answer my concerns and questions around Neuralink. I asked about concerns of the battery exploding.
Me: How will you prevent the battery from leaking or exploding?
EM: A few different ways. The first is by using a very robust casing made of a strong material. The second is to make extremely high precision seals at all connection points around the edge of the battery compartment. Then there's some basic steps like only using lithium iron phosphate for the battery instead of more dangerous lithium ion types, and making sure the battery cell is welded shut to prevent any leaks.
Me: Is Lithium Iron Phosphate safer for batteries than Lithium Ion?
EM: Yes. A lot of LiFePO4 batteries (lithium iron phosphate) use glass fiber or ceramic electrolytes rather than organic solvents that can burn when exposed to the air. For that reason, I believe these types of cells are inherently safer and have higher charge/discharge cycles than liquid-filled Li-ion cells.
Me: That's interesting.
EM: Another thing about the battery is that, even though we make it very large to enable long battery life, it's physically very small (think about the size of a quarter/25¢ coin). A lot of people assume it will be huge given the high capacity, but the battery is packed extremely densely, and that enables a high capacity in the smallest possible package.
Me: Do Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries exist yet?
EM: They do! It's an established technology. We actually bought the company that produces the batteries a few months ago which helps with supply and gives us more control on our own. We're working on making a much larger facility that could help reduce any potential global shortages.
Me: Wow. That's incredible. How many future-tech companies have you acquired in the last 18 months?
EM: I'm not sure the exact number, but quite a few... There was a pretty interesting one I recently heard about, which was basically an artificial retina. It was a medical device made by a company called Pixium Vision in France, and it really does incredible things. Imagine someone who is effectively blind or has very limited vision, being able to actually see. It's pretty amazing.
Me: Wait, you bought Pixium Vision?
EM: I did! It's an extremely high potential product, and so it was really an easy decision to acquire it. We'll be working closely to make sure that the patients get it as soon as possible.
The thing I really love about the Pixium Vision, is that it actually delivers better than natural vision. The reason is that it's a camera which is mounted on glasses and can see a huge amount more light than the natural eye.