Neuro-rights and the Risk of a Connected Mind
Who’s really in control when artificial intelligence anticipates our thoughts? An exploration of neuro-rights, mental autonomy, and the impact of technologies connecting the human mind to intelligent systems.
When AI Teaches Us About Ourselves: Are We Still the Owners of Our Minds?
Amelí is the daughter of a friend. Since birth, a neuropathy has prevented her from developing motor skills in a typical way. For her, independence isn’t a given—it’s a daily challenge. One of her options for gaining more freedom of movement is through artificial intelligence. AI could detect her involuntary movements, filter them, and help her control her body with greater precision. But the most fascinating part of this process isn’t just that AI assists her—it’s that, in a way, it teaches her brain. By identifying error patterns and correcting them, the AI trains her nervous system to respond differently. Over time, her brain can relearn and adapt, shaped by a system that understands her neural patterns better than she could herself.
This case, which on the surface is a story of resilience and technology serving autonomy, also raises a troubling question: when an AI learns about us to the point of anticipating and influencing our actions, are we still the ones making the decisions?
From Assistance to Intervention: AI’s Role in the Human Mind
The development of brain-machine interfaces has opened up a fascinating path—technology that not only helps us, but also shapes us. Today, AI systems can predict motor patterns and correct them. Tomorrow, they might anticipate our thoughts, emotions, and reactions. If a system like Amelí’s can tell her brain which movements to avoid, what’s stopping an AI from doing the same with our decisions and thoughts?
As these technologies evolve, the line between assistance and control becomes increasingly blurred. When an AI can detect an error before you even make it, correct your action, and retrain your brain so it doesn’t happen again—who’s really in control?
Neuro-rights: The Final Frontier of Privacy
The possibility of AI interacting with our minds at such deep levels forces us to confront the issue of neuro-rights. Unlike other tech advances, this isn’t just about personal data or consumer preferences. This is about the very core of our cognitive identity.
Right to mental privacy: If AI can analyze our neural patterns, how do we ensure that this information isn’t used without our consent?
Right to cognitive autonomy: If AI can retrain the way we think or act, are we still fully in charge of our decisions?
Right to neural identity: Can AI alter our perception of reality without us even noticing?
If a technology can predict what we’re going to say before we say it, correct what we think before we express it, and reshape what we feel before we even understand it—how much of our identity is still truly ours?
What If AI Knows Us Better Than We Know Ourselves?
Today, systems already exist that can anticipate decisions before people are even consciously aware of them. A brain scanner, for example, can detect whether someone is about to move their hand before they consciously decide to do it. With enough data, AI could understand our impulses and motivations before we do.
This leads to a paradox: if an artificial intelligence can anticipate our reactions, thoughts, and desires better than our own consciousness can, how much agency do we really have?
The Control Paradox
Amelí’s story is a reflection of what might happen to all of us in the future. Today, AI helps her regain control of her body. But if AI keeps learning, if it keeps predicting better, if it keeps optimizing our decisions before we make them—when do we stop being assisted and start being guided?
In a future where AI helps us with every thought and decision, the real question won’t be how much it can help us—but how much of us remains.
Thanks to the media that published this article.
