Neural Data is Not a Commodity - The Ethical Vacuum at the Heart of Neurotechnology

Abstract

This paper argues that neural data requires a categorically distinct governance framework - not because of what it can reveal, but because the substrate being accessed is itself part of what is being protected. It introduces the concept of neurosomatic data (any bodily signal from which mental states can be inferred or through which they can be altered), examines the privilege dimension of the current governance vacuum, and proposes neural sovereignty as the foundational principle for neurotechnology regulation.