James J. Hughes is an American sociologist and bioethicist who serves as the executive director of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. He is a leading advocate for democratic transhumanism.
Hughes earned his PhD in sociology from the University of Chicago and has taught at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. He is the author of Citizen Cyborg: Why Democratic Societies Must Respond to the Redesigned Human of the Future.
His work explores the compatibility of religious and transhumanist views of metaphysics, consciousness, and human transformation. He argues that many religious traditions, including those that emphasize theosis or human divine potential, share common ground with transhumanist aspirations for human enhancement.