The liquidation of federal employees carried out by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has in some way continually reduced staff involved in the investigation of Elon Musk's company. Several FDA employees managed comments and applications related to Musk’s nerves and received a pink slip over the weekend, according to a Reuters report.
Every Reuters, 20 people working in the FDA's Office of Neurological and Physical Medical Equipment has been ruled as part of Doge's broader effort to cut federal workforce. Several of these employees work directly at Musk's company, which produces brain computer interfaces designed to be implanted into the human brain and is responsible for reviewing clinical trial applications.
Sources who spoke to Reuters said they don't think the employees are targeted specifically, but the decline in workers in medical equipment offices doesn't make it easier for companies like Neuralink, which may want to see the approval process accelerated. Less people approve the application means the process slows down more, otherwise the corners will be cut. Guess what options Musk might like.
Targeted or not, it is worth noting that the frequency of people involved in Musk-owned companies has been hit by the door-started layoffs. At least 11 federal agencies targeted by layoff targets have continued actions related to Musk, with a total of 32 investigations, complaints and enforcement actions that appear to be in trouble or disappear as staff reductions appear to be reduced The result.
Neurointelligence, in particular, seems to have benefited from the efforts of squash watchdogs. Last month, the USDA's inspector general had to remove him from her office through the security department after refusing to comply with the termination, which she believes was illegal. She happens to be studying Neuralink’s investigation to see if the company violates animal welfare rules related to animal subject testing.
The FDA has been working on similar issues. Last year, the agency found Neuralink’s animal lab engaged in “offensive conditions or practices” and urged the company to resolve these issues, but did not take any punitive lawsuits related to the investigation.
Neuralink and the FDA also have a stalemate on the company's advancement of human trials, which requires the FDA to reject safety risks in 2022 and then ultimately allow limited trials to advance. In 2024, the FDA even named Neuralink a “breakthrough device”, allowing for a faster review process. The only thing faster may not be reviewed at all.
