Philip O'Keefe, one of Synchron's patients in the SWITCH clinical trial, was the first person in the world to tweet using a BCI device. Synchron announced Thursday that it has acquired a minority equity stake in the German manufacturer Acquandas, which has the unique ability to layer the metals that make up one component of the company's implant. Founded in 2012, Synchron has developed a brain-computer interface, or a BCI, called the Synchron Switch. During initial studies, Synchron has so far implanted six patients in the U.S. and four patients in Australia. Synchron declined to share the specific size of Synchron's stake in Acquandas or the exact number of devices it is producing.

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Persons: Philip O'Keefe, Synchron, Tom Oxley, Riki Banerjee, Oxley, Acquandas Organizations: BCI, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, CNBC Locations: U.S, Australia, Acquandas