JAKARTA - US Congressional Representatives Earl Francis Blumenauer and Adam Schiff want further US Department of Agriculture (USDA) surveillance of Elon Musk's Neuralink following a Reuters report outlining mistakes in brain chip company animal testing programs.
Reuters reported on Monday December 5 that USDA inspector generals were investigating Neuralink with potential animal welfare violations amid internal staff complaints that animal testing was carried out in a hurry, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.
Blumenauer and Schiff, two Democrats who are members of Congress' Animal Protection Caucus, wrote in a draft letter they would send to USDA that "the treatment of animals described in these complaints appears to indicate a lack of sad surveillance."
"We are deeply concerned that this may be another example of a case of animal atrocities involving facilities examined by USDA, referred in a previous letter to your agency, where there has been no adequate action from USDA," lawmakers said in a letter. addressed to USDA secretary Thomas Vilsack and Kevin Shea, who oversee the agency's inspection services.
Executive Neuralink did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. A USDA spokesman said the agency could not comment on Neuralink and referred Reuters to the inspector general's office, which also declined to comment.
Reuters identified several issues with animal trials of Neuralink, including four attempts involving 86 pigs and two monkeys damaged by human error, after reviewing dozens of audio, email, messages, presentations, previously unreported company internal reports, and interviews with more than 20 employees and former employees.
The error weakened the experiment and required repeated testing, which caused more animals to be killed. In total, the company has killed about 1,500 animals, including more than 280 sheep, pigs, and monkeys, following experiments since 2018, Reuters found.
Blumenauer and Schiff's offices declined to comment on what they wanted USDA to do outside the inspector general's investigation. MPs wrote in their letter that the investigation was "important to highlight the unnecessary suffering and death of animals" and potential violations of animal welfare laws.
Lawmakers also cited notes published by the Doctors Committee for Responsible Treatment, an animal advocacy group that released records related to the Neuralink partnership at the University of California Davis, as a basis of concern. Neuralink has acknowledged that six monkeys died due to health problems in an experiment he conducted with the university during their partnership that runs from 2017 to 2020.
Schiff also criticized Musk's acquisition of Twitter Inc, accusing him of "botaging the protection of digital misinformation and hatred".
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