Consent urgently needed as brain-organoid biocomputing advances
A Nature commentary argues that using lab-grown brain tissue for biocomputing raises an overlooked consent issue: donors may not foresee that their cells could power brain‑like computers or commercial AI tasks, and open-ended consent is inadequate. It calls for explicit, nuanced consent and new independent review boards, outlining three pathways—create new cell lines, obtain fresh consent from existing donors, or secure independent approval—before expanding biocomputing research.