Debra JH Mathews, lead of ethics and governance for the Johns Hopkins Institute for Assured Autonomy, has been appointed president-elect of the International Neuroethics Society (INS). She will serve as president-elect of the INS for one year, before leading the INS as president for two years.

The INS is a professional association for scientists, scholars, and trainees, in addition to practicing legal and health professionals, that focuses on the complex ethical issues arising from research on the brain.

As president of the INS, Mathews will broaden connections between INS and other professional societies that focus on neuroscience and research related to bioethics and biomedical science. She has been an active member of the INS since it launched in 2006, serving on the INS Board of Directors for the past seven years.

In her role at IAA, Mathews leads work related to the ethical, societal, and governance implications of autonomous systems. She also identifies opportunities to integrate ethics and governance into research and priorities within IAA.

Her research focuses on ethics and policy issues raised by emerging technologies, with an emphasis on artificial intelligence, neuroscience, genetics, stem cell science, and synthetic biology.