Blind creator Kim Hansol has spoken out amidst rumors of his involvement as a clinical trial participant for Elon Musk's neuroscience startup, Neuralink. Speculation arose after a photo surfaced showing the two with their arms around each other.
On October 13, Kim Hansol posted a video titled 'I Woke Up to Find Myself in the News, Let Me Explain' on his YouTube channel 'One Shot Hansol.' In the video, he addressed the rumors about meeting Elon Musk and having a chip implanted in his brain.
He began by saying, "I feel the need to clarify. I haven't even packed my bags, and my passport is still in the drawer." He continued, "I woke up to find my article at the top of the news. Seeing the controversy spread while I stayed silent, I felt I needed to post a clarification video." Regarding the photo circulating online of him standing next to Elon Musk, he added, "I haven't met Elon Musk. None of it is true, and the photo is AI-generated."
Kim Hansol shared that he is still waiting for the results of the clinical trial selection, stating, "I haven't been rejected yet. Many visually impaired individuals worldwide must have applied, and since the clinical trial approval is ongoing, it seems it will take some time to be selected." He further commented, "The experiment seems simpler than I thought. Honestly, it's a bit scary, but if selected, I will carefully consider it with my family and friends."
Previously, on February 7, Kim Hansol revealed on his YouTube channel that he had applied for Neuralink's clinical trial for vision restoration technology, which aims to implant a chip in the brain to connect neural signals to a computer.
Kim Hansol lost his vision in 2010 due to a rare disease. It is reported that his right eye can only distinguish light and dark, while his left eye can see the outlines of objects at specific angles when they are close. Since 2019, he has been sharing the daily life of a visually impaired person on his YouTube channel.
Reporter: Lee Soo-min, TenAsia danbilee19@tenasia.co.kr