Dual-use awareness
Programs with plausible dual-use implications undergo prior review by the Ethics & Environment Committee before formal charter. Review authority is real; programs can be declined.
Environmental consequence
Material, energy, and end-of-life consequences are evaluated at program charter, not at deployment. Honest accounting is required, including counterfactual analysis.
Human subjects & communities
Work that touches communities requires explicit consent architecture, reviewed independently of the program. "Benefits downstream" is not consent.
Partnerships
Partnerships are evaluated against mission alignment before commercial terms. Mission alignment is a hard filter.
Red lines
Certain work will not be undertaken regardless of scientific interest or commercial opportunity. The current list is maintained internally and reviewed annually.