A woman whose epilepsy was greatly improved by an experimental brain implant was devastated when, just two years after getting it, she was forced to have it removed due to the company that made it going bankrupt.
As the MIT Technology Review reports, an Australian woman named Rita Leggett who received an experimental seizure-tracking brain-computer interface (BCI) implant from the now-defunct company Neuravista in 2010 has become a stark example not only of the ways neurotech can help people, but also of the trauma of losing access to them when experiments end or companies go under.
TheWeirdestCunt@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Oh great so even physical ownership doesn’t even mean you own something anymore
dono@lemmy.world 2 months ago
As much as I share this sentiment in general, in this case its probably more likely that this has something to with liability if something goes wrong with the implant. And I would bet the company never released the schematics and code so that aint helpin.
Could prob be solved if implants would be required to be open source so that third party servicing could happen.
lolcatnip@reddthat.com 2 months ago
Companies that aren’t actively using their IP should be forced to license it to someone who will, or put it in the public domain.
Eatspancakes84@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I am guessing/hoping that the device needed maintenance and since nobody can maintain it, it’s removed for safety reasons. I think They wouldn’t perform surgery without such a safety need.
athairmor@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Sounds like she was in a trial so probably didn’t pay for it and doesn’t own it.
It’s still kind of fucked up that she has to have surgery to remove it but she probably agreed to these terms before it was installed.
yggstyle@lemmy.world 2 months ago
The BEST timeline.