The Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) was founded in 2004 by philosopher Nick Bostrom and bioethicist James Hughes. Incorporated in the United States as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, the IEET is a self-described "technoprogressive think tank" that seeks to contribute to understanding of the likely impact of emerging technologies on individuals and societies by "promoting and publicizing the work of thinkers who examine the social implications of scientific and technological advance". A number of such thinkers are offered honorary positions as IEET Fellows. The institute also aims to influence the development of public policies that distribute the benefits and reduce the risks of technological change.
The IEET works with Humanity Plus (previously known as the World Transhumanist Association), an international non-governmental organization with a similar mission but with an activist rather than academic approach. Humanity Plus was also founded and chaired by Bostrom, and Hughes was formerly its executive director. However, the founders of the IEET argue that it is not a transhumanist organization. Individuals who have accepted appointments as Fellows with the IEET support the institute's mission, but they have expressed a wide range of views about emerging technologies and not all identify themselves as transhumanists.
In late May 2006, the IEET held the Human Enhancement Technologies and Human Rights conference at the Stanford University Law School in Stanford, California.
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