Source: Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) / UOC News

Neurotechnologies combined with AI are transforming tools that once only observed brain activity into systems capable of interacting with and potentially influencing mental processes, and a UOC researcher warns this raises risks for mental privacy, freedom of thought and individual autonomy. The study, published open access and coordinated by Miguel Ángel Elizalde (coordinator of GERD and member of the UOC Faculty of Law and Political Science), explains that AI enables interpretation of complex brain signals—identifying patterns and correlations that were previously impossible to decode—and that some neurointervention devices (including certain brain-computer interface neurostimulators) can operate in open- and closed-loop modes capable of both reading and sending signals. The article includes an illustrative example given by Elizalde about a brain-computer interface sending environmental information directly to a brain to modify actions.

The research highlights ethical and human-rights concerns such as the potential extraction of sensitive information (emotions, intentions, preferences) and the possibility of influencing behaviour without full knowledge. It notes the EU AI Act already bans systems designed to manipulate behaviour through subliminal techniques or deception but observes that the regulation is not specifically designed for neurotechnologies and that research-stage technologies are currently not covered; this creates tension between protecting fundamental rights and the risk of driving innovation to jurisdictions with laxer rules. Elizalde suggests existing human-rights frameworks and European regulation could be sufficient if interpreted in technological contexts, potentially avoiding the need to create new "neurorights," while also acknowledging substantial therapeutic benefits in medicine and neurorehabilitation.