# Science Corp's PRIMA eye chip restores reading in first Stargardt disease patient, in Sydney trial

Source: Searchable (https://searchable.pk/news/science/science-corps-prima-eye-chip-restores-reading-in-first-stargardt-disease-patient)
Type: News article
Author: Searchable Editorial
Published: 14 Oct 2026
Updated: 14 Oct 2026
Retrieved: 14 Oct 2026

> The 2mm implant, from Neuralink co-founder Max Hodak's company, let the patient see a letter in the first session and read a word in the second.

**A tiny chip placed under the retina has let a patient blinded by Stargardt disease see a letter and then read a word**, the first time Science Corporation's **PRIMA** implant has been used for this condition, [TechCrunch reported](https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/13/science-corporation-implants-its-vision-restoring-chip-in-its-first-stargardt-disease-patient/). The surgery was done at **Sydney Eye Hospital** in Australia in May as part of an ongoing trial.

## How PRIMA works

- **The chip:** 2mm by 2mm, placed under the retina where it acts as a set of artificial light-sensing cells (photoreceptors).
- **The glasses:** the patient wears camera glasses that beam the image onto the chip.
- **The result:** a small patch of central vision that is black and white but sharp and high in contrast. Chief executive **Max Hodak** compared it to "looking through a straw."
- **The operation:** about an hour.

In early rehabilitation the patient saw a letter in the first session and read a word in the second. TechCrunch reported this single case; no trial size or formal results have been published yet, so it is an early signal rather than proof.

## Why Stargardt matters

Stargardt disease is inherited and wipes out central vision, often starting in children and young adults. About **150,000 people worldwide** have lost vision to it and it is considered incurable.

## Who is behind it

Science Corporation was founded in 2021 by **Max Hodak**, a co-founder and former president of Neuralink. PRIMA is already sold in Europe for **geographic atrophy**, an advanced form of age-related macular degeneration. Hodak says a next-generation device should be in humans within a year and that vision could approach normal sharpness within five years. The company is also building a brain-computer interface that sits on the brain's surface rather than inside it, as Neuralink's does.

## What it means for patients here

PRIMA is not available or approved in Pakistan and costs have not been published. Families dealing with inherited eye disease should see a retina specialist at a teaching hospital; our directory lists [hospitals in Lahore](/businesses/hospitals/lahore) and [Karachi](/businesses/hospitals/karachi).

## Frequently asked questions

**What is Stargardt disease?**

An inherited eye disease that destroys central vision, usually starting in childhood or young adulthood. About 150,000 people worldwide have lost vision to it, and it is currently considered incurable.

**Is the PRIMA implant available in Pakistan?**

No. It is commercially available in Europe for one form of age-related macular degeneration and is in trials for Stargardt disease. It has no approval in Pakistan.

## Sources

- Science Corporation implants its vision-restoring chip in its first Stargardt disease patient (TechCrunch): https://techcrunch.com/2026/10/13/science-corporation-implants-its-vision-restoring-chip-in-its-first-stargardt-disease-patient/

How to cite: "Science Corp's PRIMA eye chip restores reading in first Stargardt disease patient, in Sydney trial", Searchable, 14 Oct 2026, https://searchable.pk/news/science/science-corps-prima-eye-chip-restores-reading-in-first-stargardt-disease-patient