Pope Leo urges leaders to study safeguards against AI risks
The pontiff said expert concerns about catastrophic AI risks should be taken seriously and called for dialogue on safeguards.
Pope Leo has urged political leaders, artificial intelligence executives and social organisations to examine current and future AI risks, saying concerns that the technology could pose catastrophic dangers should not be dismissed as “fake news”.
Speaking at a news conference on his flight back to Rome on Monday, Leo called for continued dialogue, study and investigation to ensure AI does not reach a point where it could destroy humanity. The supplied account does not specify the date of the news conference.
Leo also questioned Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang’s reported position on safeguards. He said he had read that Huang supported inserting guardrails into some AI models, while also saying there should be no limits or government regulation.
The remarks come as the Vatican has stepped up its advocacy for international AI governance. Leo dedicated his first encyclical to AI and launched it at a Vatican event in May alongside Anthropic co-founder Christopher Olah.
Leo said people concerned about AI risks must keep working on the issue rather than assume nothing will happen. His call puts the focus on how governments and other institutions will study risks and develop safeguards.
