<p>Understanding how society judges whom an autonomous vehicle (AV) should prioritize in unavoidable accidents is crucial for aligning AV decision-making with public expectations. A large-scale global study in which participants decide on behalf of AVs finds that people often prefer saving women over men and younger adults over older pedestrians. However, the relative influence of pedestrians’ age and gender on these decisions remains unclear; overlooking it could lead to indirect biases that unfairly favour certain groups. To address this, we analyse behavioural and neural data from a choice experiment in which an AV can save only one of two pedestrians who differ in age and gender. Our neuro-behavioural results suggest that a pedestrian’s age influences decisions more strongly than their gender. When both attributes vary, age dominates the decision process, and gender has little additional impact. These findings deepen the understanding of moral judgments about AVs and help AV manufacturers and policymakers mitigate potential ethical biases in AV systems.</p>