An estimated 170 million people worldwide suffer from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a serious eye condition marked by the death of light-sensitive cells in the retina. Doctors can slow macular degeneration with vitamins, laser surgery, stem cell treatments, and even implantable miniature telescopes. But many sufferers ultimately go blind.
In 2013, the FDA approved an artificial retina that could help restore limited vision to people with degenerative eye diseases. But the device relied on a sunglass-mounted external camera and a transmitter that relayed sight information to the retinal implant.
