{"slug": "the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession", "title": "The Download: the first brain implant power user and South Korea’s AI obsession", "summary": "Casey Harrell, a man with ALS, has become the first \"power user\" of a speech brain-computer interface, using it to speak, surf the web, and work. Meanwhile, South Korea shows the highest optimism toward AI among 25 countries surveyed, with only 16% expressing concern, driven by a cultural conviction that technology is key to modernization.", "body_md": "# The Download: the first brain implant power user and South Korea’s AI obsession\n\nPlus: The US says it restricted Anthropic AI over foreign intelligence risks.\n\n*This is today's edition of *[ The Download](https://forms.technologyreview.com/newsletters/briefing-the-download/?_ga=2.179569122.736533416.1649661040-405833893.1649413289),\n\n*our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.*\n\n**This man with ALS is the first “power user” of a brain implant that lets him speak**\n\nCasey Harrell has had a set of electrodes embedded in his brain for almost three years. Harrell, who has ALS and is paralyzed, first used his brain-computer interface (BCI) to “speak” in 2023. Since then, he’s clocked thousands of hours of use.\n\nHarrell can now use the device largely independently. His team has added new features to it, and he also uses it to surf the web and perform his job. “Living with a disease like ALS, you are supposed to have diminished dreams. I do not,” Harrell told *MIT Technology Review*.\n\nThe team behind the device call Harrell “the first power user of a speech BCI.” They now plan to add further enhancements to the device.\n\n[Dive into the groundbreaking impact of Casey Harrell’s BCI](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/06/15/1138953/man-als-first-power-user-brain-implant-speak-bci/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*).\n\n*—Jessica Hamzelou*\n\n**Why do South Koreans love AI so much?**\n\nWhile a public backlash against AI brews across the US, South Koreans are optimistic. Only 16% say they are more concerned than excited about AI—the lowest of the 25 countries surveyed by the Pew Research Center—while 50% of Americans were more worried than excited.\n\nSouth Koreans share a deep conviction that embracing technology is integral to modernizing the country and cementing its place in the global order. Their fascination with AI is just the latest incarnation of that ethos—and it’s making them anxious to stay ahead.\n\n[Read the full story on South Korea’s AI fervour](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/06/15/1138983/why-do-south-koreans-love-ai-so-much/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*).\n\n*—Michelle Kim*\n\n**This ****story**** is from The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all things AI. ****Sign up**** to receive it in your inbox every Monday.**\n\n**The must-reads**\n\n*I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.*\n\n**1 The US says it restricted Anthropic AI over foreign intelligence risks**\n\nCommerce chief Lutnick said he acted over national security fears. ([Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/technology/anthropic-us-officials-meeting-monday-resolve-dispute-over-export-curbs-2026-06-15/) $)*+ Following the ban, Anthropic disabled access to its new models.* ([BBC](http://bbc.com/news/articles/c932g3v3e13o))*+ Both sides are increasingly desperate for a resolution.* ([WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/anthropic-trump-officials-seek-deal-on-restoring-powerful-model-access-d9c4ffee?mod=tech_lead_story) $)**2 DeepSeek just became China's most valuable startup**\n\nIt raised $7 billion, the largest-ever first-round funding for an AI startup. ([The Information](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/deepseek-closes-record-7-billion-plus-funding-unusual-deal-structure) $)*+ The deal values DeepSeek at over $50 billion.* ([WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/deepseek-becomes-chinas-most-valuable-ai-startup-after-over-7-4-billion-fundraise-78ef64c0) $)*+ Its unusual structure preserves founder control. *([Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/chinas-deepseek-closes-over-7-billion-funding-with-unusual-deal-structure-2026-06-16/) $)*+ DeepSeek’s new flagship model has caused a stir.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/04/24/1136422/why-deepseeks-v4-matters/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*))\n\n**3 Alibaba has unveiled AI models for robots amid a shift from chatbots**\n\nIt’s joined a global race to move AI into the physical world. ([SCMP](https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3357260/alibaba-eyes-physical-world-its-first-suite-ai-models-robots?utm_source=feedly_feed))*+ AI is learning to understand its surroundings.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/04/21/1135650/world-models-ai-artificial-intelligence/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*))\n\n**4 Fox is buying streaming giant Roku for $22 billion**\n\nThe deal creates the third-largest player in US TV by viewing share. ([BBC](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cql1yew3vezo))*+ Fox is making a big bet on free streaming.* ([Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/06/15/fox-is-buying-roku-its-big-bet-making-streaming-free/) $)**5 EA has launched a new way to advertise “directly into gameplay”**\n\nEA Advertising allows brands to become part of the game itself. ([CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/15/electronic-arts-launches-a-new-way-to-advertise-directly-into-gameplay.html))*+ Xbox’s new chief strategy officer is also eyeing in-game ads. *([PC Gamer](https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/xboxs-new-chief-strategy-officer-is-still-a-big-believer-in-in-game-ads/))*+ GenAI could reinvent what it means to play.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/06/20/1093428/generative-ai-reinventing-video-games-immersive-npcs/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*))**6 It’s trivially easy to use Reddit to manipulate AI search**\n\nA tiny snippet of text can trick ChatGPT and Google’s AI search. ([404 Media](https://www.404media.co/it-is-trivially-easy-to-use-reddit-to-manipulate-ai-search-research-suggests/))*+ AI search is being manipulated to generate dangerous biases.* ([BBC](https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20260519-google-tackles-attempts-to-hack-its-ai-results))\n\n**7 Sperm have been made magnetic to allow IVF inside the body**\n\nThe technique enables remote guidance towards an egg. ([New Scientist](https://www.newscientist.com/article/2530334-sperm-have-been-made-magnetic-to-allow-ivf-inside-the-body/) $)*+ Automation and AI are transforming IVF.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/05/07/1136946/whats-next-for-ivf-ai-robot-pgt-gene-editing/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*))\n\n**8 The world’s leading deepfake expert no longer trusts his own eyes**\n\nHe’s struggling to prove what’s real before the internet decides. ([NYT](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/14/us/ai-deepfake-hany-farid.html%20%3E) $)\n\n**9 Meta’s CTO admits its AI reorganisation was “atrocious”**\n\nHe's promised staff better communication—and snacks. ([Wired](https://www.wired.com/story/andrew-bosworth-meta-employees-unrest/) $)\n\n**10 Silicon Valley billionaires are pretending to kill each other for fun**\n\nIn a new game show from Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. ([WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/tech/silicon-valley-mafia-founders-fund-b014f603?mod=tech_lead_pos3) $)\n\n**Quote of the day**\n\n**“There was a speeding ticket, and they gave Fable the death penalty.” **\n\n—Alex Stamos, the former chief security officer of Facebook, tells [the Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/06/15/how-anthropic-lost-white-houses-trust-then-its-flagship-product/) that banning foreign access to Anthropic’s leading model is a disproportionate punishment.\n\n**One More Thing**\n\nInside effective altruism, where the far future counts a lot more than the present\n\nInside effective altruism, where the far future counts a lot more than the present\n\nSince its birth in the late 2000s, effective altruism has aimed to answer a deceptively simple question: “How can those with means have the greatest impact?”\n\nDirecting money to evidence-based approaches is EA’s best-known technique. But as it’s expanded from an academic philosophy into a community and a movement, its ideas of the “best” way to change the world have evolved as well.\n\n*—Rebecca Ackermann*\n\n**We can still have nice things**\n\n*A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? **Drop me a line**.)*\n\n+ The humble table has been reimagined as an [unconventional public artifact](https://fengfanyang.com/hang-on-1).\n\n+ Take a visual tour of the weird, centuries-old history of architecture's [most gruesome gargoyles](https://www.kuriositas.com/2012/08/gargoyles-glorious-gruesome-grotesques.html).\n\n+ A colorful parakeet unseen for an entire century was triumphantly rediscovered in an unexplored [Indonesian forest](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-colorful-parakeet-had-been-seen-only-once-over-the-past-century-birders-just-rediscovered-it-in-an-unexplored-indonesian-forest-180988907/).\n\n+ This shimmering Southern Lights timelapse filmed by an astronaut on the [SpaceX Dragon](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/cr5j4e4r3v9o) is stunning.\n\n### Deep Dive\n\n### The Download\n\n### The Download: DeepSeek’s latest AI breakthrough, and the race to build world models\n\nPlus: China has blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus.\n\n### The Download: introducing the 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now\n\nPlus: An unauthorized group has reportedly accessed Anthropic’s Mythos.\n\n### The Download: AI hacking beyond Mythos, and chatbots’ impact on our brains\n\nPlus: Anthropic has called for a global slowdown in AI development.\n\n### The Download: supercharged scams and studying AI healthcare\n\nPlus: DeepSeek has unveiled its long-awaited new AI model.\n\n### Stay connected\n\n## Get the latest updates from\n\nMIT Technology Review\n\nDiscover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession", "canonical_source": "https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/06/16/1139010/the-download-brain-implant-power-user-bci-south-korea-ai-obsession/", "published_at": "2026-06-16 12:10:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-06-16 12:50:30.302574+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["artificial-intelligence", "ai-research", "ai-products", "ai-ethics", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["Casey Harrell", "ALS", "brain-computer interface", "BCI", "MIT Technology Review", "South Korea", "Pew Research Center", "Anthropic"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-the-first-brain-implant-power-user-and-south-koreas-ai-obsession.jsonld"}}