Brain technologies—also referred to as neurotechnologies—are devices or tools that interact with the brain or nervous system. They may monitor or change brain activity, or help restore brain function. These technologies are increasingly used in clinical care, scientific research, and commercial settings. They are being developed and applied for a range of neurological (e.g., stroke, epilepsy, chronic pain) and psychological (e.g., depression, PTSD, OCD) conditions.

IA partnerships are collaborations between academic institutions (e.g., universities or academic medical centers) and companies to advance shared research and development goals. For brain technology development, IA partnerships often involve co-developing devices, running clinical trials, or licensing academic inventions for commercialization. These partnerships can accelerate innovation, but also raise important ethical and logistical challenges that this toolkit helps address.

Developing brain technologies requires combining different types of expertise and resources. Universities often lead in basic science and early innovation, while companies specialize in product development, funding, and scaling technologies for public use. These partnerships accelerate the path from research to real-world solutions.

Startups often play a unique role in brain technology innovation. They are typically small, nimble, and focused on rapidly developing and testing novel ideas. However, they may face distinct pressures—such as attracting investors, protecting intellectual property, or demonstrating early results. The way startups navigate these pressures affects how they engage with academic and clinical partners. This toolkit provides guidance relevant to both startups and established companies.

Brain technologies raise unique concerns, including:

• Mental privacy and brain data use: Brain technologies can access sensitive cognitive information, raising questions about how brain data are collected, stored, and used—and by whom.
• Equitable access: Brain technologies are often expensive and available only in select research or clinical settings, which can widen existing disparities in access to care and innovation.
• Data transparency: Transparency in how clinical trials are conducted and how data are reported is essential for maintaining public trust and scientific integrity.
• Conflicts of interest (COIs): Researchers and clinicians may have financial or professional ties to companies developing brain technologies. Conflicts of interest are not inherently problematic; rather, what is important is how COIs are managed to avoid undue influence and undermining of trust.
• Therapeutic misconception: When research and clinical care occur in the same setting, participants may mistakenly believe that an experimental intervention is guaranteed to benefit them directly.

This toolkit is for a range of professionals involved in industry-academic partnerships, including:

• University researchers: neuroscientists, engineers, and other investigators involved in developing or studying brain technologies.
• Clinicians: physicians, surgeons, and other healthcare professionals who treat patients using brain technologies such as implants, brain-computer interfaces, or stimulation devices.
• Academic administrators: technology transfer officers, conflict of interest managers, IRB staff, and university legal teams who oversee, regulate, or facilitate brain technology-related partnership activities.
• Industry leaders and brain technology companies: individuals from startups or established companies involved in commercializing brain technologies
• Policy advisors and funders: professionals shaping regulations, investment, or oversight in brain technology development.

Whether you’re a researcher, administrator, clinician, or entrepreneur, this toolkit offers resources to help you navigate complex IA partnerships in a way that is both responsible and operationally effective. You’ll find guidance on key partnership processes including

managing expectations, addressing risk, and aligning commercialization goals with broader societal and scientific values

The toolkit is based on scientific work conducted by neuroethics researchers in the Bioethics Research Center at Washington University School of Medicine, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) BRAIN Initiative (1R01MH130519). We interviewed stakeholders across academia, industry, and clinical practice to understand key concerns emerging from brain technology partnerships and to identify feasible, real-world solutions.

These insights informed initial design of toolkit materials. As we continue refining the toolkit, we are actively seeking feedback from stakeholders through expert panels, advisory board input, and surveys. This iterative process ensures that the resources are practical, relevant, and responsive to the needs of those working in brain technology partnerships.

The toolkit includes a range of resources for different types of professionals within industry-academic partnerships. Examples of valuable resources include:

• Stakeholder-specific guidance: Tips and strategies tailored to each stakeholder group on how to communicate effectively with partners, clarify roles and expectations, and manage responsibilities across different stages of a partnership (e.g., pre-research, during research, and post-research).
• Practical case studies and discussion guides: Real-world examples that illustrate common challenges that emerge in partnerships and offer insights into how others have successfully addressed them.
• Checklists for ethical review and partnership agreements: Tools to help assess whether partnerships are structured and operate in ways that promote transparency, fairness, and accountability that go beyond conventional review by Institutional Review Boards.
• Sample language for contracts and disclosures: Templates and suggestions for framing agreements, managing conflicts of interest, and establishing clear expectations.
• Visual tools to clarify trade-offs and common tensions: Graphics and frameworks that illustrate value conflicts (e.g., innovation vs. patient safety) and help partners engage in constructive, ethically-informed decision-making.

Clinical devices are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for patient use and are regulated for safety and effectiveness. Research devices are still being tested for feasibility and not be intended for widespread therapeutic use. It is essential that clinicians and researchers clearly communicate these distinctions to patients and participants. Doing so helps prevent therapeutic misconception—a misunderstanding in which individuals believe they are receiving proven treatment rather than participating in a research study.

Ownership and access to brain data are ongoing debates. Companies may want exclusive rights for innovation and market share purposes, while universities may prioritize open sharing of scientific data. Our toolkit explores how to negotiate data access and stewardship that aligns with ethical norms and public benefit while simultaneously supporting advances in innovation.

Patient voices are essential but often underrepresented in brain technology development. This toolkit provides strategies for those researching and commercializing brain technologies to help cultivate more meaningful public engagement through partnerships with patients and research participants via integrated advisory boards, consent transparency, and community feedback loops.

These partnerships can help quickly bring innovative treatments into clinical practice. However, partnerships also raise important concerns about undue influence on clinical decisions. Safeguards are needed to ensure that new brain technologies are clinically integrated based on strong evidence and in a manner that maintains public trust.

No. This toolkit is not intended to provide legal advice. Instead, it offers practical and actionable policy-oriented guidance to help stakeholders manage ethical and procedural challenges that often arise in partnerships. Users should consult legal professionals for advice on specific legal matters.

The toolkit provides checklists and sample language to support IRBs and research administrators in evaluating study protocols, managing risk, and ensuring responsible consent processes.

Brain technologies can powerfully shape human lives—by affecting memory, movement, emotion, and identity. Responsible innovation helps ensure these tools are developed and used in ways that are safe, inclusive, and trustworthy. Responsible innovation also strengthens long-term collaboration, public support, and the quality of care.

Visit our “Resources” page for downloadable tools and links to current regulations and guidance for a range of industry-academic stakeholders

We welcome your input! If you have suggestions, concerns, or ideas for improving the toolkit, please complete our feedback survey [link to feedback survey once we have it—this won’t be ready for a bit but wanted to flag this anyway]. Your insights will help us refine toolkit content and ensure tools remain relevant and useful for all stakeholders.