Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, has announced his plans to co-found a new brain-to-computer interface startup named Merge Labs, which aims to compete directly with Elon Musk’s Neuralink. This exciting news becomes all the more remarkable amid escalating tensions and heated competition between the two tech giants. Their relationship has soured since Musk’s departure from OpenAI in 2018.
Altman first introduced the concept of “The Merge” in a 2017 blog post, stating, “Although the merge has already begun, it’s going to get a lot weirder. We will be the first species ever to design our own descendants.” This idea is one of the things that highlights the transformative nature that technologies that integrate human cognition with AI have.
Neuralink, which was founded by Musk in 2016 and publicly unveiled to the world in 2017. At present, the company is conducting clinical trials with people affected by high-level paralysis. Most recently, in June, the company raised a staggering $650 million at a $7.4 billion valuation in its Series E. This massive influx of funding has pushed its valuation sky-high to $9 billion. Musk envisions Neuralink as a kind of revolutionary platform that will make human communication with machines more natural. This vision dovetails nicely with Altman’s plans for Merge Labs, recently valued at $850 million.
According to TechCrunch, Merge Labs is raising a $20 million to $30 million round, with big expected participation from OpenAI’s new ventures team. These two adjacent startups are on radically innovative paths with brain-to-computer interfaces, each out to change the course of human-machine relationships forever.
Over the past couple months, their ongoing rivalry has been revived yet again— this time on social media site X (formerly Twitter). Since then, they have been trading public accusations of manipulation and dishonesty. Despite their personal differences, both innovators share a common goal: leveraging technology to enhance human capacities.
The idea of “the singularity” has been very closely associated with Musk. It heralds a day when artificial intelligence preempts human intelligence. Altman’s vision of “The Merge” underscores the transformative potential when technology and humanity combine. This is an inspiring vision that future technological advancements, in particular artificial intelligence, will lead to radically positive changes to our society.
With their forward-looking minds, both Neuralink and Merge Labs are set to seize important roles in the development of responsible technology. The rivalry between these two titans will undoubtedly impact the field of brain-computer interfaces for decades.
The big TechCrunch Disrupt event in San Francisco will be there from October 27-29, 2025. Look forward to intriguing conversations about cutting-edge technologies and how they will shape the world around us.
