Presentation by David Winickoff at the OECD Global Conference on Governance Innovation which took place in Paris on 13-14 January 2020. Further information is available at http://www.oecd.org/gov/regulatory-policy/oecd-global-conference-on-governance-innovation.htm.

1. MOVING “UPSTREAM” FOR GOVERNANCE
INNOVATION
David Winickoff
Senior Policy Analyst
Division of Science and Technology Policy
OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation
Global Conference on Governance Innovation
OECD
13 January 2020

2. 2
create the conditions for
the development and diffusion
of trusted and trustworthy technology
for governance and for people.
Disruptive to economy and
society
(e.g. Uber)
Pacing. Rapidly evolving with
unclear impacts
(e.g. AI)
Governance Challenges
Enabling larger areas of work
(e.g. NPR)
Misfits existing legal
categories
(e.g. neurotech)
Goals and challenges for governance innovation

3. The “Collingridge Dilemma”
Regulate later
• changing course may
become expensive, difficult
and time- consuming
because tech is built in
• “End-of-pipe” solutions
might be too late
Regulate earlier
• full consequences of the
technology might not be
fully apparent
• danger of misguided or
inadequate regulation
• unnecessary regulation can
constrain innovation
“Code is law” (Lessig) = technology is built-in governance
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4. • New forms of energy, mobility and IT solutions,
blending technology creation in end-use environments
“Upstream” model to governance that engages
the innovation process itself
Test-beds and living laboratories
• Co-develops, tests and demonstrates
technology and governance mechanisms
European Energy Forum in Berlin
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OECD soft law

5. 5
Brain–computer interfaces (BCIs)
• Prevention and neuronal rehabilitation for
serious injuries; chips with data feeds,
Internet of Things; behavior control?
Brain imaging technologies
new measures for diagnosis / outcome in
chronic pain; use/misuse in medical and
legal settings to predict behavior
OECD Recommendation on Responsible
Innovation in Neurotechnology
Importance of biotechnology, biometrics, and
“technologies of the human” for governance
innovation
• Key ethical, legal and social implications
• Diverse ways to leverage neurotech and other
biometrics, especially in health, insurance, security,
biosafety regulation
• This regards careful planning and architecture
Prioritising safety assessment
Promoting inclusivity
Enabling societal deliberation
Enabling capacity of oversight
and advisory bodies
Safeguarding personal brain
data and other information
Promoting cultures of
stewardship and trust across
the public and private sector
Anticipating and monitoring
potential unintended use
and/or misuse.

6. Anticipation
• Update the arts of foresight and technology assessment
• Building governance into systems – engineering and design standards
• Soft law tools to avoid regulatory lock-in but to guide
Future directions in upstream governance:
building cases and experiments in…
Inclusivity
• multi-stakeholder models to collectively shape technological
developments
• New inter-disciplinarity in R & D across natural, engineering, social,
humanities, policy science
• Interface with the private sector on governance
Directionality
• Steering technological governance through societal deliberation
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