Paper Number
ICIS2025-1298
Paper Type
Short
Abstract
How does the implantation of NFC microchips reconfigure human–technology relations when the interface becomes anatomically and experientially internal? To explore this question, we conducted a seven-year multi-method study of grinders—do-it-yourself cyborgs experimenting with subdermal implants. Our preliminary findings introduce the concept of the interfaceable body, a cybernetically enhanced condition in which user–device boundaries dissolve and machine-like affordances become integrated into bodily action. Participants described implants not as external objects but as body parts, reshaping agency, ownership, and digital connectivity. We also identify embodied co-existence, where implants merge with body schema and self-perception. These insights extend postphenomenological approaches and challenge conventional IS models of adoption and mediation, which presuppose external artifacts. By showing how non-mediated interfacing and enabling meshworks emerge around implanted data flows, we argue for broader conceptual frameworks that integrate ethics, privacy, and embodiment. Ongoing work will refine a postphenomenological model of in-body technology use.
Recommended Citation
Lima, Vitor and Belk, Russell, "Cyborgs and the Emergence of Interfaceable Bodies" (2025). ICIS 2025 Proceedings. 9.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/icis2025/hti/hti/9
Cyborgs and the Emergence of Interfaceable Bodies
How does the implantation of NFC microchips reconfigure human–technology relations when the interface becomes anatomically and experientially internal? To explore this question, we conducted a seven-year multi-method study of grinders—do-it-yourself cyborgs experimenting with subdermal implants. Our preliminary findings introduce the concept of the interfaceable body, a cybernetically enhanced condition in which user–device boundaries dissolve and machine-like affordances become integrated into bodily action. Participants described implants not as external objects but as body parts, reshaping agency, ownership, and digital connectivity. We also identify embodied co-existence, where implants merge with body schema and self-perception. These insights extend postphenomenological approaches and challenge conventional IS models of adoption and mediation, which presuppose external artifacts. By showing how non-mediated interfacing and enabling meshworks emerge around implanted data flows, we argue for broader conceptual frameworks that integrate ethics, privacy, and embodiment. Ongoing work will refine a postphenomenological model of in-body technology use.
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