Pope Leo XIV Urges Human Oversight of AI, Bars Delegating Life‑Altering Decisions
Pope Leo XIV warns AI must never decide matters of life, liberty or force, calls for human control and launches his first encyclical on safeguarding humanity.
POLICY WIRE — Vatican City, Italy — Pope Leo XIV cautioned that entrusting machines with choices that affect human life threatens dignity and the common good.
Speaking to participants at a gathering focused on artificial intelligence, the pontiff emphasized that technology must keep the human person at its core to avoid reducing individuals to mere data points.
Pope Leo XIV said, “Some decisions must never be delegated,” during an audience, adding that weapons control and border management should never be handed over to AI.
Marking the 135th anniversary of the social‑teaching encyclical Rerum novarum, he unveiled his inaugural encyclical, Magnifica humanitas: On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence, urging protection of humanity, truth, work dignity, social justice and peace.
He called for robust ethical safeguards to govern AI and other digital tools, insisting that effective, informed human oversight remain essential for any decision affecting freedom, life or the use of force.
Reporting by Policy-Wire (PW)
