Byrna Technologies announces inclusion in Harvard-Stanford study

Byrna Technologies (BYRN) announced its inclusion in a landmark, independent study conducted by researchers from Harvard University, Stanford University, and Harvard Business School. The study, titled “The Universal Pursuit of Safety and the Demand for Lethal, Non-Lethal, or No Guns,” was released on October 8, 2025 and was published through Harvard’s Social Economics Lab. It is among the most comprehensive academic investigations to date on firearm ownership and attitudes toward non-lethal defense. The researchers targeted a total sample size of approximately 6,000 U.S. adults aged 18-64 across a nationally representative sample, using randomized information treatments to measure how Americans’ safety beliefs shape their preferences for lethal versus non-lethal protection. The study was conducted independently by researchers at Harvard University, Stanford University, and Harvard Business School, with no involvement from Byrna in its design, execution, or funding. Within the experiment, the Byrna SD served as the exclusive non-lethal firearm used to evaluate how exposure to such products influences Americans’ safety beliefs and preferences measure these shifts in attitudes. According to the authors, exposure to Byrna’s technology significantly increased respondents’ willingness to pay for non-lethal devices, their openness to substituting them for lethal firearms, and their support for policies encouraging adoption of less-lethal options. In fact, 43 percent of respondents said they would prefer to own a firearm capable of incapacitating rather than killing someone, underscoring the growing public interest in non-lethal solutions and the sizable market opportunity for products like Byrna. The study found that both firearm owners and non-owners identify protection of family or self as the top rationale related to firearms, and that information about non-lethal alternatives shifts preferences toward options that incapacitate without killing. Notably, only 21% of firearm owners in the study had previously heard of Byrna, suggesting strong potential for further education and awareness. The authors characterize encouraging demand for non-lethal alternatives as a potential “harm reduction” approach that can expand access to personal protection while reducing social and legal risks associated with lethal weapons.