In the encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas”, the Pope states that technological innovations are not neutral, and can “increase participation and justice”, but also “widen inequalities, control and exclusion”
Pope Leo XIV calls for the “disarmament” of artificial intelligence (AI) to “prevent it from dominating humanity” in his first encyclical, released this Monday, which is dedicated to protecting human dignity in the age of AI.
In the encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas”, the Pope states that technological innovations are not neutral, and can “increase participation and justice”, but also “increase inequalities, control and exclusion”, warning of the danger of AI “concentrating in the hands of a few”.
In the first major document of his pontificate, 110 pages long, Leo XIV addresses one of the main challenges of today, calling for “a fair social order in the digital age”, with an “adequate legal framework”, “fair rules” and “effective protection mechanisms”.
Warning about “clearly anti-human uses” of AI, “such as manipulating information or violating privacy”, it also draws attention to a more subtle deception, when systems, “presenting themselves as neutral and objective, reflect and reinforce stereotypes or ideological positions of those who designed and programmed them”.
