LAUSR

The seven articles included in the AJOB Neuroscience special issue map important ethical issues that have and will continue to emerge with advances in neuroscience and neurotechnology. A critical consideration not directly addressed in these articles is how industry relationships will shape the way neurotechnology (e.g., devices and implants) is researched and used in clinical practice. Industry relationships with academic institutions and researchers have become commonplace in biomedical research. While such relationships may incentivize innovation and provide much-needed resources, they may also generate conflicts of interests (COIs) and a variety of ethical concerns. Based on our review of the literature, we currently know very little about how this plays out in the neurotechnology sphere (Fins and Schiff 2010). But, we can formulate research questions and cultivate vigilance by learning from the impact of industry relationships in other domains such as drug development.