Noland Arbaugh, the first person to receive Neuralink’s brain-computer interface, appeared at Fortune Brainstorm Tech 2025 on Wednesday. After an on-stage conversation about his remarkable journey, Arbaugh capped the session by facing none other than star content creator WFM Anna Cramling in a live game on Chess.com.
The 31-year-old from Yuma, Arizona, made headlines worldwide last year when he became the first human patient of Elon Musk’s neurotechnology company. Arbaugh was paralyzed from the shoulders down after a swimming accident in 2016.
After receiving the brain implant, he can control the computer cursor just by thinking, which allows him to chat with friends, browse the web, and even play chess.
Arbaugh appeared on stage on the last day of the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference in Park City, Utah, on Wednesday and discussed his life-changing journey. Chess.com has previously interviewed Arbaugh about how chess became a significant part of his life after the accident, helping him navigate difficult times. He is a regular on Chess.com and even travelled to Paris as a special guest of the 2024 Speed Chess Championship Finals, where he met some of the biggest stars of the game.
At Brainstorm Tech, he was reunited with Chess.com’s own Chief Chess Officer IM Danny Rensch, who hosted the exhibition. Cramling joined remotely from Sweden, with the game projected on the big screen. “It should be a pretty inspirational chess game against an inspirational person,” Rensch said in his introduction.
Arbaugh, rated just under 1400 in blitz, played with the white pieces and had five minutes, while 2300-rated Cramling had Black with three minutes.
The game began with the London System, and Arbaugh had a decent start, with Cramling saying: “This looks like a normal position! How much prep have you done, Danny?” Rensch later praised his play: “Noland is playing phenomenal chess, defending all the threats.”
But as Arbaugh paused to explain to the audience how he moves the mouse cursor with his thoughts—“I don’t think it’s very complicated. It’s all thought-based”—his position began to crumble.
Cramling seized control of the b-file, placed a queen on b2, and Arbaugh was forced to give up two rooks for the queen. More pressing than the position, though, was the clock. Arbaugh ran out of time after 32 moves.
Reflecting on the experience, Arbaugh admitted: “My brain was so focused on moving that I couldn’t really figure out how to play chess. An awful job.” Rensch, however, disagreed: “He is definitely better than 1400!”
The loss did not prevent Arbaugh from expressing excitement about the opportunities the Neuralink implant has given him, saying, “I feel like I have a lot of purpose and hope. I am incredibly grateful for that, and I am excited for the future.”
And how much does he play on Chess.com? “If not daily, then every other day. I tend to play quite a bit.”
P.S.: This was not Danny Rensch’s only appearance at the Fortune Brainstorm Tech. On Monday, he appeared with Larry Fitzgerald Jr, Former NFL Wide Receiver, Arizona Cardinals & Investor, to speak about how AI is shaping the game of chess, the enduring power of strategic thinking, and what it all means for the future of competition. You can watch the full session below:
