TESLA boss Elon Musk has vowed to release a device which connects the human brain to computers within just four years.

The billionaire owns a firm called Neuralink which is working to design an interface that will allow people to cope with the effects of severe brain injuries due to strokes, cancer or other catastrophes.

Billionaire tech pioneer Elon Musk is co-founder and CEO of electric car firm Tesla Credit: AP:Associated Press

The gadget will read people's thoughts and allow them to speak to each other using the power of thought.

"If I were to communicate a concept to you, you would essentially engage in consensual telepathy," Musk said.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning will create computers so sophisticated and godlike that humans will need to implant "neural laces" in their brains to keep up, Musk said in a tech conference last year.

"There are a bunch of concepts in your head that then your brain has to try to compress into this incredibly low data rate called speech or typing," Musk added.

1 Humans will soon be able to interact directly with computers using the power of thought Credit: Getty Images

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"If you have two brain interfaces, you could actually do an uncompressed direct conceptual communication with another person."

In March, Musk launched Neuralink to explore how computers could merge with human brains.

Facebook is also interested in mind-reading and has a team of 60 trying to develop technology which can scan thoughts at a rate of 100 words per minute.