The introduction of microchips under the skin is becoming more common. Transhumanist and futurist Zoltan Istvan discusses why devices are implanted not only by geeks, but also by those who are far from technology
Thousands of people have had microchips the size of a grain of rice implanted under their skin over the past year. Despite the fact that the number of these people is constantly growing, the market for non-medical implants is practically unregulated. Some Western companies are already offering implants to their employees. So employers can monitor the movements of their employees, and workers themselves can buy food from office machines, use a printer and open doors, just by placing a hand with a microchip on the sensors.
Lawyers fear total corporate surveillance and exploitation of workers. Regulators agree: the US states of Nevada, Arkansas, New Jersey and Tennessee are developing laws regarding subcutaneous microchipping.
Tech enthusiasts, in turn, assure that it is necessary to focus on the benefits of devices, and not on a threat they think is invented. There is a rational grain in this: for people with disabilities, for example, microchips help to easily open doors, record messages and pay for something. In the army, with the help of such mini-devices, you can find kidnapped soldiers. Fear of “corporate” implantation of microchips should not interfere with voluntary microchips, the danger of which, by and large, is exaggerated, Zoltan Istvan is sure.
You can read more about Zoltan Istvan’s opinion in his column for The New York Times.