Trust The Chip?

So despite our collective penchant for all things technological (luddites not withstanding) could we really be this close to implanting a “chip” in our bodies? The news from Neuralink today would seem to suggest so. Those of you suffering from Technophobia may not be too familiar with Elon Musks venture. Yes the man who seems to be everywhere on and off the platform X, truly has outdone himself this time. The chip in question is said to be the breakthrough mankind has sought for eons. Neuralink, has only been around since 2016, and to think they’ve managed to come this far so quickly only proves that money can buy chips! Elon has invested upwards of 100 million & clearly it’s paid off in spades.

So the benefits of volunteering for said chip? Allegedly it won’t be implanted in the brain but in the jugular vein! Why am I not yet comforted by this notion? Its purpose is to assist those with cervical spine issues such a paralysis and ALS? And while that sounds promising & wonderful, one can’t help to wonder what comes after that? After all wouldn’t this chip be given access to the most sought after data bank known to man? The Brain, is in fact the MOST valuable commodity our society has. The data extracted from this chip will somehow escape that whole doctor/patient privilege thingy of this I’m sure. After all there isn’t a handheld device that we haven’t already signed away numerous rights to via the fine print, the fine print no one has bothered to read in years or dare I say ever? The thought of such an implant going mainstream, think; stepping up to a kiosk in the mall? or it replacing those blood pressure machines at your local pharmacy (for a fee ofc) all in the name of what? convenience? safety? It doesn’t take a marketing genius to see the potential.

Where does it end? Will it ever stop? Could we eventually become ONE with our Phones? Tablets or worse, our TV’s? Cars? Amazon/Whole Foods has already given us an option to pay for their items via a swipe of your palm! How much more “data” can be extracted? 80%? 90%? all of it? & what’s to stop those who collect it from sharing it for profit? or worse keeping it to themselves for reasons that may never be revealed? I realize I’m getting ahead of myself here, but the technology is moving faster than you, I or congress will ever be able to keep up with. Is the future going to be riddled with unanswered questions leaving us to be simply reactive as opposed to being proactive in our search for resolutions?

with Apologies to #Shakespeare it would seem to me that “to be or not to be” is feeling less like 1601 and more like 2024