Pope Leo XIV outlined the vision for his papacy on Saturday, highlighting artificial intelligence as one of the most pressing issues facing humanity today. He echoed the core priorities of his predecessor, Pope Francis, and emphasised that AI presents significant challenges in protecting human dignity, justice, and labor rights. Leo expressed his commitment to addressing contemporary challenges, stating, “In our own day, the church offers everyone the treasury of its social teaching in response to another industrial revolution and to developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defence of human dignity, justice and labour.”
In his remarks, Leo connected with Pope Francis, referencing his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, who served from 1878 to 1903 and laid the groundwork for modern Catholic social teaching. This was most notably captured in his 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum, which tackled workers' rights and capitalism in the early days of the industrial revolution. The late pope criticized both laissez-faire capitalism and state-driven socialism, shaping a uniquely Catholic perspective on economic issues.
Towards the end of his pontificate, Francis increasingly voiced concerns about the dangers AI poses to humanity and called for an international treaty to regulate its use. He warned that the power of this technology could reduce human relationships to mere algorithms. Last year, he brought his message to the Group of Seven industrialized nations during their summit, urging that AI must remain centered on human values so that decisions, particularly about the use of weapons or even non-lethal tools, be made by humans—not machines.
In his annual peace message for 2024, the late Argentine pope reiterated the need for an international treaty to ensure that AI is developed and utilized ethically. He argued that technology lacking essential human values—such as compassion, mercy, morality, and forgiveness—poses a significant and unchecked risk.
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Inputs from PTI
