Sam Altman is co-founding a new brain-computer interface startup called Merge Labs. The company is raising funds, possibly with a big chunk from OpenAI’s ventures team, according to unnamed sources who spoke to the Financial Times.
Merge Labs could be valued at $850 million. A source tells TechCrunch that talks are still early, and OpenAI hasn’t officially committed yet, so the details could change.
Altman’s new startup is working with Alex Blania, who runs Tools for Humanity, the project behind Altman’s eye-scanning digital ID system. 
Merge Labs is gearing up to compete with Elon Musk’s Neuralink. Neuralink has been developing brain-implant chips since 2016 and is already in human trials for people with severe paralysis.
Neuralink recently raised $600 million at a $9 billion valuation. It aims to let users control devices with their minds.
The two companies could change how humans interact with tech. Altman has long written about “The Merge” — a future where humans and machines become one.
Musk and Altman have been publicly feuding this week on X after Altman accused Musk of manipulating the platform, and Musk called Altman a liar.
OpenAI declined to comment on Merge Labs.
Sam Altman blogged about the idea of merging humans and AI back in 2017:
“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.”
Musk left OpenAI in 2018, and the rivalry with Altman has only grown since.
If Merge Labs launches officially, it looks like Altman is set to directly challenge Musk’s edge in brain-computer tech — a fight over the future of the so-called singularity.
