Pope Leo XIV releases first encyclical on artificial intelligence ethics and human dignity

Pope Leo Is Set to Release an Encyclical About A.I. Why Is That Important?

Pope Leo XIV on Monday will present his vision for how to preserve human dignity in the era of artificial intelligence. He will offer his ideas by issuing a kind of document known as an encyclical, a nearly 400-year-old papal tradition of teaching the Roman Catholic faithful. The document will be Leo's first encyclical since he became pope last year. Written by the pope and generally addressed to the whole church, encyclicals impart authoritative teachings about moral or social challenges. They lack the legal status of a papal bull, which is a formal declaration of an article of faith or moral law. But Catholics are still encouraged to use encyclicals to guide their lifestyles and choices. Popes do not usually attend the presentation of their encyclicals, but Leo is set to present his in person at the Vatican alongside Christopher Olah, a founder of Anthropic, a major A.I. developer, and several Catholic prelates and theologians. Popes have been writing letters to the faithful since the early days of the church, but Benedict XIV, pope from 1740 to 1758, is credited with having codified the encyclical as it is understood today. Here are five previous encyclicals that stand out. 1. On Workers' Rights: "Rerum Novarum" Issued on May 15, 1891, this encyclical from Pope Leo XIII became a foundation for Roman Catholic social teaching. It's no coincidence that the current pope chose his papal name from Pope Leo XIII, and formally signed his first encyclical, "Magnifica Humanitas," or Magnificent Humanity, on May 15, 2026, even though he is presenting the document publicly 10 days later. After the upheaval of the Industrial Revolution, "Rerum Novarum," or "Of New Things," addressed the needs of the working class and helped kindle a social justice movement. The encyclical defended workers' rights, including the right to form unions and to earn a living wage, while rejecting both the socialism of the time and laissez-faire capitalism. 2. On World Peace: "Pacem in Terris" Written in 1963, in the context of the Cold War, Pope John XXIII presented a catalog of rights that he said all people and nations had a duty to respect. Unlike earlier encyclicals, the document was addressed to all of humanity, not just to Catholics. The encyclical, which means "Peace on Earth," called for a ban on nuclear weapons and suggested the creation of a global public authority that would promote the "universal common good," seeing the United Nations as a first step in that direction. The document exhorted people to participate in public life "and to work together for the benefit of the whole human race." When it was issued, The New York Times printed the entire text. 3. On Birth Control: "Humanae Vitae" Paul VI's encyclical in 1968 confirmed the church's prohibition of artificial birth control. It immediately prompted debate among Catholics that has continued for decades. The central point of the encyclical, whose title means "Of Human Life," was that every act of sexual intercourse had to be free of any deliberate effort to prevent conception. Not all Catholics agree. According to a 2024 Pew Research Center poll, most Catholics in the United States and Latin America said the church should allow the use of artificial birth control. And to stop the spread of AIDS, many bishops have since offered qualified support for teaching about condoms. 4. On Economics: "Caritas in Veritate" Pope Benedict XVI's 2009 encyclical, "Charity in Truth," called for a radical rethinking of the global economy. The declaration criticized a growing divide between rich and poor, urged financiers to behave more ethically and called on businesses to exercise greater social responsibility. Like the "Pacem in Terris" of John XXIII, Benedict's encyclical also called for a global political authority to play a role in regulating the economy. Many scholars admired the document's powerful reflections on the links between love, truth and justice, but some critics considered the encyclical a tough read, citing the dense prose and sprawling range of themes. 5. On the Environment: "Laudato Si'" Written by Pope Francis in 2015, "Laudato Si'," or "Praise Be to You," was the first encyclical focused solely on the environment. The document called on people to care for the planet, framing that obligation as a moral and spiritual imperative, not just a consideration of politics, science and economics. When the encyclical was issued, The Times published an interactive version online. In "Laudato Si'," Francis emphasized the connections between global warming, poverty and social upheaval. The encyclical helped galvanize the global environmental movement, though Francis issued another document in 2023 lamenting that scant progress had been made on ecological matters.

Pope Leo XIV to release long-awaited AI manifesto on ethical risks and global impact

Pope Leo XIV will publish on Monday his long-awaited manifesto on artificial intelligence, outlining the Catholic Church's response to the technology's ethical and social challenges. The U.S.-born pontiff will personally present the "Magnifica Humanitas" encyclical at the Vatican alongside senior Church officials and leading AI experts, including Anthropic co-founder Dario Amodei. Pope Leo XIV will release on Monday his long-awaited manifesto on artificial intelligence (AI), a bid to address ethical and social challenges as the technology rapidly develops worldwide. The US pope will attend the presentation of the "Magnifica Humanitas" (Magnificent Humanity) encyclical at the Vatican in person -- a first for the Catholic Church. He will be joined not only by officials from the Holy See but experts including the co-founder of the American startup Anthropic, a key player in the booming AI landscape. Anthropic is in a legal battle with the US military after refusing to change its internal policy prohibiting the use of its Claude model for lethal autonomous warfare or mass surveillance. Leo has denounced the race for AI in the military field, saying that "delegating decisions concerning the life and death of human beings to machines" is a "destructive spiral". Since his election a year ago as the Church's first US pope, he has repeatedly warned of the dangers of AI, including "the gradual replacement of reality by its simulation". And he has slammed the "environmental devastation" caused by the "frenzied race" for rare earth elements, which are essential for modern electronics. Read morePope Leo to visit France in September, Vatican says 'Wake-up call' AI could be worth up to $4.8 trillion (4.13 trillion euros) by 2033, a 25-fold increase in a decade, while concentrating its profits in the hands of a limited few, according to the UN. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last year warned "the window is closing to shape AI -- for peace, for justice, for humanity". Leo has made the hot-button issue a cornerstone of his papacy in dedicating to it his first encyclical -- a document which lays the basis for Church teaching and longer-term debate. Experts say "Magnifica Humanitas" could prove as influential as Pope Francis's "Laudato Si", a 2015 climatemanifesto that triggered political and civic reactions worldwide. The Vatican sees this new text as an extension of its social teachings on "protecting people in the AI era". It was signed on May 15, the 135th anniversary of a 1891 encyclical by Leo XIII which laid the foundations of the Church's social doctrine during the Industrial Revolution. "The Industrial Revolution transformed the labour market, people's lives, hegemony, and power dynamics," said Marijana Grbesa, political science professor at the University of Zagreb, and a speaker at an AI conference in the Vatican. "At the time, it was necessary to train individuals in the use of tools. The same is true today: we need to train and educate," she told AFP. The pope, she said, will emphasise that "education is not enough today". "It's a wake-up call for the whole of civilisation", to "be rational when we use these tools". Read more'Friendly and constructive': Rubio meets Pope Leo XIV in bid to ease tensions 'Perception of reality' Leo has emphasised the need for "digital literacy... to understand how algorithms shape our perception of reality." In April he warned against the use of AI to fuel "polarisation, conflict, fear, and violence". And in January he lamented "the lack of transparency in the creation of the algorithms" that govern the operation of various chatbots, whose use is growing rapidly worldwide. The release of "Magnificent Humanity" follows several years of study by the Church of AI-related technologies. As early as 2020, the Holy See launched the "Rome Appeal for an AI Ethic", which called for new technologies to respect human dignity. Leo's predecessor Pope Francis spoke extensively on the subject, calling for AI to be regulated and warning that it could exacerbate inequalities.

Pope to release major artificial intelligence manifesto

Pope Leo XIV will release on Monday his long-awaited manifesto on artificial intelligence (AI), a bid to address ethical and social challenges as the technology rapidly develops worldwide. The release of "Magnificent Humanity" follows several years of study by the Church of AI-related technologies. Pope Leo XIV will release on Monday his long-awaited manifesto on artificial intelligence (AI), a bid to address ethical and social challenges as the technology rapidly develops worldwide. The US pope will attend the presentation of the "Magnifica Humanitas" (Magnificent Humanity) encyclical at the Vatican in person -- a first for the Catholic Church. He will be joined not only by officials from the Holy See but experts including the co-founder of the American startup Anthropic, a key player in the booming AI landscape. Anthropic is in a legal battle with the US military after refusing to change its internal policy prohibiting the use of its Claude model for lethal autonomous warfare or mass surveillance. Leo has denounced the race for AI in the military field, saying that "delegating decisions concerning the life and death of human beings to machines" is a "destructive spiral". Since his election a year ago as the Church's first US pope, he has repeatedly warned of the dangers of AI, including "the gradual replacement of reality by its simulation". And he has slammed the "environmental devastation" caused by the "frenzied race" for rare earth elements, which are essential for modern electronics. Wake-up call AI could be worth up to $4.8 trillion (4.13 trillion euros) by 2033, a 25-fold increase in a decade, while concentrating its profits in the hands of a limited few, according to the UN. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last year warned "the window is closing to shape AI - for peace, for justice, for humanity". Leo has made the hot-button issue a cornerstone of his papacy in dedicating to it his first encyclical - a document which lays the basis for Church teaching and longer-term debate. Experts say "Magnifica Humanitas" could prove as influential as Pope Francis's "Laudato Si", a 2015 climate manifesto that triggered political and civic reactions worldwide. The Vatican sees this new text as an extension of its social teachings on "protecting people in the AI era". It was signed on May 15, the 135th anniversary of a 1891 encyclical by Leo XIII which laid the foundations of the Church's social doctrine during the Industrial Revolution. "The Industrial Revolution transformed the labour market, people's lives, hegemony, and power dynamics," said Marijana Grbesa, political science professor at the University of Zagreb, and a speaker at an AI conference in the Vatican. "At the time, it was necessary to train individuals in the use of tools. The same is true today: we need to train and educate," she told AFP. The pope, she said, will emphasise that "education is not enough today". "It's a wake-up call for the whole of civilisation", to "be rational when we use these tools". Perception of reality Leo has emphasised the need for "digital literacy... to understand how algorithms shape our perception of reality." In April he warned against the use of AI to fuel "polarisation, conflict, fear, and violence". And in January he lamented "the lack of transparency in the creation of the algorithms" that govern the operation of various chatbots, whose use is growing rapidly worldwide. The release of "Magnificent Humanity" follows several years of study by the Church of AI-related technologies. As early as 2020, the Holy See launched the "Rome Appeal for an AI Ethic", which called for new technologies to respect human dignity. Leo's predecessor Pope Francis spoke extensively on the subject, calling for AI to be regulated and warning that it could exacerbate inequalities.