Navigating Ethical Translation of Neurotech that Benefits All

Résumé

In this talk, Dr Rommelfanger will highlight the promise and ways forward to address some of the more pressing value conflicts that can arise in the development of brain technology. She will provide examples of promising medical applications and delve into the unique issues that arise related to personal identity, agency, and privacy. In addition, she will address challenges related to long-term responsibility for these devices, including who is accountable for their ongoing functionality and how experimental devices are maintained over time. The talk will also explore the increasingly blurred lines between therapeutic and nonmedical applications of brain technology and the implications of this trend. Dr Rommelfanger will provide overview of the global landscape of national and international governance efforts related to protecting citizens and societies. She will conclude by inviting consideration of how a cross-sectoral and diverse community perspective can better assist in designing a future of neurotech that benefits everyone.

Karen Rommelfanger

Dr Karen S. Rommelfanger is a leading neurotech ethicist and strategist. She founded the Institute of Neuroethics (IoNx), the first think tank focused solely on neuroethics, promoting trusted neuroscience across various sectors. Through her consultancy, Ningen Neuroethics Co-Lab, she works on applied neuroethics and strategy. Dr Rommelfanger is also a professor at Emory University, with expertise in neurology, psychiatry, and behavioral sciences.

Her research has been published in prestigious journals like Nature and Neuron, and she co-edited the Handbook of Neuroethics. As the first neuroethicist editor at Neuron, she has held key roles with the American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience and the International Neuroethics Society.

In recognition of her contributions, Dr Rommelfanger was appointed to the US NIH BRAIN Initiative Neuroethics Working Group, DARPA's ELSI Neurotechnology Panel, and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's group on responsible neuroscience innovation in Southeast Asia. She has also consulted for the OECD and the Council of Europe, advocating for responsible neurotechnology innovation and neurorights. Dr Rommelfanger co-chaired the Global Neuroethics Workgroup of the International Brain Initiative and served on the World Economic Forum's Global Futures Council. She is a recognized commentator on neuroethics, neurotech innovation, and policy in national and international media.