Breakthrough Ocular Prosthesis Restores Vision for Blind Patients

Max Hodak, the CEO and founder of Science Corp, has announced a breakthrough with the PRIMA ocular prosthesis that has restored vision for patients previously classified as almost blind. The device, implanted with a chip under the retina, has enabled patients to read letters on an eye chart and even entire pages of a book.

The technology was detailed in a recent publication in The New England Journal of Medicine. Hodak, a biomedical engineer, founded Science Corp in 2021 after his tenure at Neuralink. The PRIMA chip operates by converting images captured by a camera worn as glasses into infrared light, stimulating the retina, which allows patients with intact optic nerves to perceive visual information again.

The device is intended for individuals who have lost the light-sensitive cells in their retina, such as those suffering from age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and certain other eye diseases.

While Hodak emphasizes that this approach does not cure blindness, he believes that advancements could potentially lead to normal visual acuity within the next five to seven years. Currently, the PRIMA device is undergoing review in Europe, with expectations for market availability in the region next year, while the process in the United States is anticipated to be slower.

Hodak's personal connection to the field stems from his grandfather's struggles with retinitis pigmentosa, highlighting the emotional weight of this technological advancement.