Pope Leo XIV presents Vatican’s first AI ethics encyclical
The US-born pontiff joins AI experts at the Vatican to outline the Catholic Church’s stance on the social and ethical challenges of artificial intelligence.
Pope Leo XIV is set to present the "Magnifica Humanitas" encyclical at the Vatican on Monday, marking the first time a pontiff has personally unveiled a document dedicated to the ethical and social challenges of artificial intelligence. The US-born pope will be joined by senior Church officials and leading industry figures, including Anthropic co-founder Dario Amodei, to outline the Catholic Church’s response to the technology’s rapid global development.
The encyclical addresses specific concerns regarding military AI applications, algorithmic transparency, and the environmental impacts of the sector. Pope Leo has previously condemned the delegation of life-and-death decisions to machines as a "destructive spiral" and criticised the "environmental devastation" caused by the extraction of rare earth elements required for electronics. The document serves as a cornerstone of his papacy, extending the Holy See’s social teachings to the digital age with a focus on protecting human dignity.
The release follows a period of intense study by the Church, building on the "Rome Appeal for an AI Ethic" launched in 2020. The text was signed on May 15, coinciding with the 135th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical, which laid the foundations of the Church’s social doctrine during the Industrial Revolution. Experts suggest the new manifesto could exert an influence comparable to Pope Francis’s 2015 climate document, "Laudato Si’".
According to the United Nations, AI could be worth up to $4.8 trillion by 2033, with profits concentrated among a limited few. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the window to shape AI for peace and justice is closing. Pope Leo has echoed these concerns, warning against the use of AI to fuel polarisation and conflict, while lamenting the lack of transparency in the algorithms that govern modern chatbots.
Marijana Grbesa, a political science professor at the University of Zagreb, noted that the encyclical acts as a "wake-up call for the whole of civilisation." She emphasised that while the Industrial Revolution required training individuals in the use of tools, the current era demands a broader rational approach to how these technologies shape reality. The Vatican views the text as a necessary step to ensure that new technologies respect human dignity and do not exacerbate existing inequalities.
