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Press release 02/2026

Public hearing: Novel neurotechnologies – ethics, law and society

In the workplace, during leisure time, in education or wellness: Neurotechnology could soon become part of our everyday lives. What ethical, legal and social challenges does this pose? In preparation for its Opinion, the German Ethics Council will be questioning experts in a public hearing on 19 March.
03/16/2026

“Smart glasses, EEG headsets and AI headphones represent only the beginning,” Aldo Faisal, computer scientist and spokesperson for the working group on neurotechnology at the German Ethics Council, states. “Neurotechnology is becoming increasingly useful as a consumer technology thanks to AI and the convergence of a huge variety of data. But what does that mean for individuals and for society as a whole? We need to take a closer look and, beyond our enthusiasm for and concerns about technology, address the ethical considerations that arise as result.”

“With consumer technologies that get so close to the way we think and act, we need to ask ourselves whether individual consent to the use of these technologies is sufficient, or whether we as a society need additional guidelines,” Helmut Frister, Chair of the German Ethics Council and legal scholar, adds. “This is also something we want to discuss in our Opinion and consult our experts on.”

At the hearing, the German Ethics Council will talk to seven experts about the application scenarios that are expected to carry the greatest ethical, legal and social risks, what action they believe is needed and what solutions they propose. Topics such as freedom of thought, mental self-determination, enhancement and the protection of mental data will be discussed. The focus will be on the following questions:

  • What challenges arise when neurotechnologies capture or influence the emotions, attention or thoughts of large numbers of people?
  • Who bears responsibility when neurotechnologies influence brain processes and human actions in the context of advancing human-machine interfaces – possibly without our awareness?
  • How can individuals and their perception of themselves change through the use of neurotechnologies?
  • What new dependencies and constraints could arise if neurotechnologies are widely used, e.g. at work, in education or in other everyday situations?
  • What are the social risks arising from the major involvement of large tech companies in current neurotechnology developments?
  • How could social interaction change if, as a result of ubiquitous neurotechnologies, notions of normality change, inequalities increase or values shift?

The hearing is open to the public and will be streamed at www.ethikrat.org/live. Registration is not required. The hearing will be held predominantly in German, with some parts held in English with an optional simultaneous translation into German.

Public hearing
Novel neurotechnologies – ethics, law and society
When: 19 March 2026 from 1:00 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.
Where: www.ethikrat.org/live

The programme and an event brochure including information about the speakers (in German only) can be found at www.ethikrat.org/veranstaltungen/anhoerungen/neue-neurotechnologien-ethik-recht-und-gesellschaft.