UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of Neurotechnology

UNESCO developed the first global standard-setting instrument dedicated to the ethics of neurotechnology, prepared by an ad hoc expert group and adopted by its General Conference in November 2025. As a Recommendation it is a soft-law instrument: it is not directly binding, but member states commit to reporting on implementation, and it aims to harmonize principles across jurisdictions.

Its themes track the neurorights debate — mental privacy and protection of neural data, human dignity and agency, mental integrity, prevention of manipulation and discrimination, transparency, and equitable access — while extending guidance across the whole innovation pipeline (research, development, deployment) and to special protection for children, whose developing brains are especially vulnerable. It complements, rather than replaces, national laws and earlier UNESCO instruments on bioethics and on the ethics of artificial intelligence.