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ChatGPT-maker OpenAI has announced an investment in Merge Labs, a brain-computer interface (BCI) startup which was founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Rival to Elon Musk’s Neuralink, the mission of Merge Labs is to develop safe and scaleable brain-computer interfaces. “We are excited to support and collaborate with Merge Labs as they turn an ambitious idea into reality and ultimately products that are useful for people,” said the company.
OpenAI revealed that funding made by the company will support Merge Labs’ mission of creating safe, scalable brain-computer interfaces that could one day allow humans to interact with artificial intelligence directly through neural signals. The company has not yet disclosed the size of the investment, but the partnership underscores OpenAI’s growing interest in technologies that extend beyond software into hardware and human augmentation.
What Merge Labs is building
Merge Labs is a research lab with the long-term mission of bridging biological and artificial intelligence to maximize human ability, agency, and experience. It is developing fundamentally new approaches (opens in a new window) to BCIs that are safe and interface with the brain at much higher bandwidth by combining biology, devices, and AI.
The company is focused on creating non-invasive neural interfaces that can translate brain activity into digital commands. Unlike more invasive approaches that require surgical implants, Merge Labs aims to build consumer-ready devices that are both accessible and ethically designed.
The company’s early prototypes reportedly use advanced sensors and machine learning models to interpret neural signals, with potential applications ranging from medical rehabilitation to enhanced productivity tools.
Merge Labs vs Neuralink
Elon Musk founded Neuralink in 2016 and till now the company has made significant progress in developing brain implants which enable people with paralysis to control devices with the help of their thoughts. The Elon Musk-owned company recently raised $600 million at a $9 billion valuation and is conducting human trials.
Merge Labs on the other hand, is reportedly working on less invasive brain interfaces with a strong emphasis on AI-powered enhancements. The focus of the startup is not just medical rehabilitation but broader human-AI integration.
“I believe the merge has already started,” Altman wrote in a 2017 blog post. “We will be the first species ever to design our own descendants”.
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