The US food and drug administration (FDA) has fired around 20 employees, including those reviewing Elon Musk’s brain implant company, Neuralink, as part of a broader government workforce purge, sources told Reuters news agency.
The cuts affected staff in the FDA’s Office of Neurological and Physical Medicine Devices, which oversees clinical trial applications for brain-computer interface devices, including Neuralink. While sources told Reuters they did not believe the firings specifically targeted Neuralink reviewers, the loss of staff is expected to slow the agency’s ability to assess medical device applications.
“It’s intimidating to the FDA professionals who are overseeing Neuralink’s trial,” said Victor Krauthamer, a former FDA official with three decades of experience. “We should be worried about the whole trial, and the protection of the people in the trial.”
Neuralink is currently conducting trials on a device that enables paralysed individuals to control digital devices using their thoughts. The company is also developing an implant designed to restore vision. The FDA granted Neuralink a designation last year to fast-track the review process for its vision-restoring implant.
The layoffs were reportedly part of a broader effort to cut government spending, led by Musk after he spent over $250 million to support US President Donald Trump’s re-election. Trump has pledged to reduce federal costs and assured Musk would remove himself from conflicts of interest between his businesses and government regulatory bodies.
The White House responded to questions by stating, “the Trump administration will abide by ethics laws.” Meanwhile, the FDA and Musk have not commented on the matter.
One source noted that, similar to other agencies, the layoffs mainly affected probationary employees—those with less than one or two years of service—who have fewer legal protections. Employees were dismissed for “performance reasons,” despite receiving high ratings weeks prior, sources claimed. Supervisors were not consulted before the cuts and only learned about them from the employees affected.
Experts warn the loss of experienced reviewers could delay the assessment of critical medical devices, including Neuralink’s trials, raising concerns about safety oversight in the process.