From Homo sapiens to Homo nexus: Toward a neuroethics of empathy in the age of artificial intelligence

The advance of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education requires ethical discussions to move beyond technological instrumentalism and the growing emphasis on productive performance. The aim of this chapter is to reflect on the importance of empathy and university consideration in the face of neurobiological reductionism and the isolation produced by the digital. Methodologically, a qualitative hermeneutic-critical approach was applied, articulating an interdisciplinary dialogue among neuroethics, the social sciences, and political philosophy. On the basis of an analysis of empirical evidence, moral dilemmas and distinct cultural constructions were observed; the text also discusses the seriousness of the weakening of the humanities in curricula, which fosters disinterest in emotions and undermines students’ moral judgment. Against certain notions in neuroethics that limit concern for others only when they are regarded as close, a pedagogical approach grounded in the ethics of care and consideration is proposed. It is concluded that higher education bears an inescapable responsibility to cultivate an empathetic imagination that enables students to recognize their own vulnerability and global interdependence. Ethical recognition of the bond that unites humanity makes it possible to present the transition from Homo sapiens to Homo nexus, capable of responding not only with intellect but, above all, with solidaristic responsibility to the challenges of the contemporary world.