MKUltra Program Overview

MKUltra was an illegal CIA human research program operating from 1953 to 1973 that investigated mind control, chemical interrogation, and behavior modification techniques.

1953
Program Initiation
149
Subprojects
1973
Documents Destroyed

Key Facts

  • Authorized by CIA Director Allen Dulles
  • $10+ million budget (equivalent to $90+ million today)
  • 80+ institutions participated including universities, hospitals, prisons
  • LSD was the most extensively studied substance
  • Many subjects were unaware they were participating

Program Objectives

  • Develop chemical materials for mental manipulation
  • Create amnesia-producing substances
  • Enhance interrogation techniques
  • Develop methods for behavior control
  • Counter Soviet and Chinese advances in mind control

Historical Context

MKUltra emerged during the Cold War when fears of communist "brainwashing" techniques were prevalent. The program was partly inspired by:

  • Chinese and Soviet interrogation techniques observed during the Korean War
  • Nazi human experimentation discoveries from World War II
  • Early research into psychedelics and their effects on consciousness
  • Project ARTICHOKE, the predecessor to MKUltra