OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman is co-founding a new brain-computer-interface company called Merge Labs and plans to support it with funding from OpenAI and outside investors, according to details reported by the Financial Times. The startup is seeking about $250 million in fresh capital at a valuation of roughly $850 million, positioning it among the most heavily financed entrants in the nascent neurotechnology sector. Merge Labs intends to develop high-bandwidth implants that directly link human brains to computers, setting up a head-to-head contest with Elon Musk’s Neuralink. Altman will hold a founding stake but will not run daily operations; former Neuralink executive Alex Blania is expected to take the lead, the reports said. The move deepens the personal rivalry between Altman and Musk and highlights growing investor appetite for neural-interface devices as advances in artificial intelligence open new commercial avenues.