Elon Musk’s brain-implant startup Neuralink Corp. forced an employee to work with monkeys that carried the Herpes B virus in conditions in which the animals scratched her bare skin, according to a complaint filed in state court in California.
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00:00Elon Musk's brain implant startup Neuralink forced an employee to work with monkeys that
00:06carried the herpes B virus in conditions in which the animal squashed her bare skin, according
00:12to a complaint filed last week in California.
00:16The employee, Lindsay Short, said that once she transferred to the company's Fremont
00:21location in August 2022, she encountered, quote, a work environment fraught with blame,
00:28shame, and impossible deadlines.
00:31She said she was later fired after telling her supervisors that she was pregnant.
00:36Short sued the company for retaliation, wrongful termination, and discrimination based on her
00:42gender among other issues.
00:44The startup is in the early stages of clinical trials for its brain chip device, which is
00:50aimed at restoring function for paralyzed patients.
00:53An Arizona man, Nolan Arba, recently underwent surgery and became the first human patient
01:00to have the device implanted.
01:02A quadriplegic, Arba can now successfully play video games by using only his thoughts.
01:09Short said she was working with monkeys that carried the herpes B virus when she was scratched
01:15through a glove.
01:16She accused the company of falling to provide proper protective gear to work with the monkeys.
01:22In another incident, after she was forced to perform a procedure she wasn't familiar
01:28with, a monkey scratched her face.
01:30When she insisted on medical treatment, her boss threatened, quote, severe repercussions
01:36if it happened again, according to the complaint.
01:39The company has also come under fire for the mistreatment of monkeys and other animals
01:44in the past, according to botched surgeries when they conduct research on monkeys housed
01:50at the University of California at Davis.
01:53It has since moved monkey research to its own facilities.