Neuralink co-founder departs Musk-backed startup -sources

FILE PHOTO: SpaceX owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks during a conversation with legendary game designer Todd Howard (not pictured) at the E3 gaming convention in Los Angeles, California, U.S., June 13, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Blake

(Reuters) - A founding member of Elon Musk's Neuralink left the company in recent weeks, according to two people familiar with the matter, the latest in a string of departures at the brain implant startup.

Paul Merolla, who helped launch Neuralink in 2016 and worked on its chip design program, is no longer with the San Francisco area company, the sources said.