Joe Rogan Experience #2167 - Noland Arbaugh

Arbaugh uses an implant in his motor cortex that wirelessly streams neural spikes to a computer app, allowing him to move a cursor, type, browse, and play complex games like Civilization VI purely through neural intent—at speeds sometimes faster than his conscious sense of movement.

Neuralink’s ultra-thin threads began retracting because Arbaugh’s brain pulses about 3 mm with each heartbeat, triple what designers had planned for; this revealed critical biomechanical realities that are now informing hardware and algorithm improvements.

Initially, Arbaugh had to try to move his paralyzed hand in specific directions, but over time he discovered he could simply think “cursor go here” and the system would respond—suggesting future interfaces may become fully thought-based without any imagined limb motion.

Even after many implanted threads effectively pulled back and stopped providing strong signals, Neuralink’s team improved algorithms and decoding such that Arbaugh’s performance rebounded and now surpasses his initial control, underscoring the power of adaptive software.

Neuralink is already testing ‘brain-to-spine’ links in animals, where one implant in the brain talks to another in the spinal cord to drive leg movement, and they’ve demonstrated early visual stimulation in monkeys—pointing toward potential treatments for paralysis and blindness.