The next decade of brain science has the potential to reshape the human experience.

If we are passive, the coming brain revolution will either fall short of its potential or drift towards negative outcomes. With BrainMind’s vision to form a new vital connective tissue between the lab and society, our responsible innovation initiative considers how to encourage decision-making that maximizes the potential benefits and minimizes the unintended hazards that accompany rapid innovations in brain science.

In 2025, BrainMind will convene a sector-defining summit: "Asilomar for the Brain and Mind." This global, multi-sectoral meeting will focus on the research, development, distribution, and use of near-term innovations in brain science. Regulation will never keep pace with technological innovation. We need to build neuroethics into the culture. Influential leaders across brain science sectors must come together to adopt unified ethical principles and practical tools for responsible neuroinnovation.

This meeting will not reinvent the wheel. Neuroethics principles and guidelines have already been developed in committee meetings internationally (US BRAIN Initiative, OECD, IEEE, GNS, others) but most of the people translating ideas out of the lab are either unaware of these guidelines and standards or don’t know how to use them in their day-to-day decision-making. Asilomar will catalyze adoption of practical tools and methods to navigate ethical questions throughout the innovation process.

Examples of practical neuroethics tools to be disseminated at Asilomar:

1. “Points to Consider” questionnaire for funders to screen candidate companies and researchers

2. Practical benchmarks for entrepreneurs and scientists such as bylaws for responsible neurotechnology companies, and codes of ethics created by exemplar labs, funds, and companies

3. Other implementable frameworks such as a Neuroscience ESG

PRIVATE SECTOR ENGAGEMENT

The Asilomar conference will include deep engagement with private sector stakeholders, including investors, entrepreneurs, philanthropic organizations, and life science and tech leaders. Tremendous private and corporate investments have been directed into brain research in recent years and commercialization of brain technologies will have an unprecedented influence on individual lives and societies. 

BrainMind is uniquely suited for a convening role at Asilomar because of our capacity to engage leaders in the private sector. Our 3,000-member community includes individuals at the highest reaches of their respective industries: Midas list investors, widely revered technology entrepreneurs, past and future Nobel laureates. These leaders are making strategic decisions at the most influential institutions in the world. BrainMind has already organized several world class Summits since 2018, at Stanford, MIT, and at the OECD headquarters in Paris.

THE “PACING PROBLEM”

Neurotechnology is a converging technology whose pace is accelerated by advances in computational sciences, AI, data science, engineering, materials science, neuroscience, and more. As we are witnessing once again with the breakneck speed of neuroinnovation developments, regulation simply cannot keep the pace of innovation. Neuroinnovation is happening rapidly, often with private funding and without any public oversight. We need to support ongoing, active engagement with experts who can help scientists and industry to navigate and innovate responsibly in this space.

ASILOMAR AND TOOLS FOR ETHICAL ALIGNMENT

At the first Asilomar conference for recombinant DNA in 1975, sector leaders developed a set of protective principles – these guidelines influenced how science was funded. The meeting also catalyzed a larger set of ethical norms that have been honored to this day. In cases of lone bad actors in DNA research, authorities respond swiftly; not because of regulation, but because there is consensus  on ”how things are done” in this field. This is the power of culturally enforced values. In brain science, we are awash in high-level principles, but we now need to socialize best practices among a wide range of stakeholders: scientists, entrepreneurs, investors, and philanthropists. At Asilomar, we can encourage adoption of useful tools for the makers and doers who are translating neurotechnologies into meaningful, beneficial, available technologies for humanity. Further we hope to create an enduring community of ethical leaders in our ecosystem.

MOMENTUM TOWARD ASILOMAR

 BrainMind has already built exciting momentum toward the Asilomar conference. We have brought in the founders of the neuroethics field, including Steve Hyman, Martha Farah, international thought leaders such as Hervé Chneiweiss, Marcello Ienca, leading scientists such as Edward Chang and Doris Tsao, and leadership from groups including the OECD, IEEE, UNESCO the US and International Brain Initiatives. We have attracted prominent funding partners including the Dana Foundation and Kavli Foundation, and we have recruited many prominent academics, investors, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders in the space.

This summer, in preparation for the Asilomar announcement, Reid Hoffman is convening strategic advisory sessions with leaders from Google, Microsoft, Meta, IBM, and other major industry players in AI and Neurotechnology.

Asilomar Preparation and Planning

BrainMind has been hosting a series of targeted gatherings, both small and large, over the past five years to foster consensus in preparation for Asilomar. Learn more about the pre-gathering below by clicking on the picture:

NEUROETHICS TOOLKIT

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SUPPORTERS

The BrainMind National Neuroethics Advisory Committee Meeting was made possible with sponsorship from The Kavli Foundation and the Charles A. Dana Foundation, with co-hosting support from the Duke Initiative for Science and Society.