CYBOTAGE: Veterans’ Perspectives on Neuroenhancement
Event description
- Academic events
- Free
- Health and wellness
- Inclusion
- Science
CYBOTAGE is a voluntary research and art project led by Arizona State University professor Zeina Barakeh, inviting veterans to share their views on new brain technologies being developed for military use. These technologies, called Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs), are devices that connect the brain directly to computers to help with things like communication, focus, and controlling machines hands-free.
We want to hear from veterans about what these technologies mean to you after your service. You can take part in one or more activities below. Each includes its own registration and consent forms so you can decide what feels right.
Contributions shared with your permission may be featured on CYBOTAGE’s public digital archive website, including perspectives, artworks, and other creative expressions.
Eligibility
You must be 18 years or older and a veteran or active-duty military member to join.
Activities
Get more details on each activity and register at the CYBOTAGE landing page.
1. Contribute via online survey and/or recorded interview
Share your thoughts on neuroenhancement and its impact after military service.
Takes approximately 30–40 minutes for the online survey.
Prefer talking to writing? Participate in a recorded one-on-one interview (~60 minutes via Zoom, phone, or in-person). You can do one or both.
2. Participate in our artmaking workshops (in-person)
This workshop offers a relaxed, supportive environment where you can create freely and connect with other veterans. You’ll imagine “enhanced” or “healed” bodies through 2D artwork using collage, drawing, painting, and traditional materials. Depending on resources, you may also experiment with sound using digital tools, synthesizers, or software.
No art skills required, just bring your ideas.
Dates: April 4, 7, 11, 18, 23, and 24. Artwork may appear in a public exhibition.
3. Attend CYBORGUARDIANS: Ethical Frontiers of BCIs in Military Contexts educational webinar
Learn from leading experts in military ethics and brain technology about the future of BCIs.
April 2, 2026 from
11-12:30 MST
Zoom
Principal Investigator
Zeina Barakeh is an artist and scholar working at the intersection of art and military human enhancement technologies. As part of her research on Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs), she created CYBOTAGE, a cross-disciplinary initiative investigating BCIs’ impacts on autonomy, society, and warfare. Through CYBOTAGE, she documents veterans’ perspectives via surveys, interviews, workshops, and exhibitions, broadening access to critical discussions on human enhancement and building a national archive of veterans’ visualizations of life-size “enhanced” bodies. Her work has earned the 2024 SF Bay Area Artadia Award, the 2024 Spirit of the Depths Award, and the 2025 Leonardo-ASU Seed Grant, with public art installations on the Salesforce Tower Top (SF), ZAZ Corner Jumbotron (Times Square, NY), and at the San Francisco Arts Commission; and exhibitions in museums, galleries, and film festivals.
Institutional Review Board (IRB) Contact
If you have any questions about your rights as a subject/participant in this research, or if you feel you have been placed at risk, you can contact the Chair of the Human Subjects Institutional Review Board, through the ASU Office of Research Integrity and Assurance, at (480) 965-6788.
Veteran Wellness & Support Resources
Click the here to access the Veteran Wellness & Support Resources.
This webinar is funded by the Leonardo-ASU Seed Grant
