Pope Leo Issues First Encyclical Demanding AI Be ‘Disarmed’
The BBC reported Monday that Pope Leo XIV has released his first major papal teaching document, calling for artificial intelligence to be “disarmed” and warning that unchecked technology risks creating what he described as “new digital slaveries.”
A Deliberate and Forceful Choice of Words
The document, titled *Magnifica Humanitas* (“Magnificent Humanity”), was presented by the Pope himself at the Vatican. Leo acknowledged the weight of his language directly. He said the word “disarmed” was chosen intentionally because the moment demanded vocabulary strong enough to command attention. The encyclical drew sharp parallels between the historical exploitation of enslaved people and patterns now emerging in AI production and deployment.
Leo also issued one of the most direct Vatican apologies to date for the Church’s own historical role in slavery, expressing what he called deep personal sorrow and formally asking for pardon on the Church’s behalf.
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AI in Warfare and Politics Draws Sharp Condemnation
Leo reserved pointed criticism for the military use of AI. He argued that removing human judgment from weapons systems makes it harder to justify any conflict as morally acceptable. Autonomous systems, he wrote, risk lowering the threshold for resorting to violence. They also reduce human victims to data points, he said, making conflict more impersonal and more likely.
On politics, Leo condemned the use of AI to manipulate images and videos. He said such tools expose citizens to distorted and misleading information at scale.
Also Read: AI and the Future of Warfare, Explained
Background: A Church Watching Technology Accelerate
This encyclical follows a pattern set by Leo’s predecessor. In 2015, Pope Francis published *Laudato Si*, urging urgent action on the climate crisis. By 2023, Francis was publicly expressing disappointment over how little had changed. Observers note Leo faces a similar risk of issuing moral guidance that outpaces institutional capacity to enforce it.
Developers Singled Out for Ethical Responsibility
Alongside Leo at the presentation stood Christopher Olah, co-founder of AI research company Anthropic. Olah acknowledged that AI labs, including his own, operate within incentive structures that can conflict with ethical outcomes. He said the questions AI raises extend far beyond what computer scientists alone can or should resolve.
Leo echoed that view, stating directly in the encyclical that every design decision a developer makes reflects an underlying vision of humanity. He has since convened a commission to advance the document’s goals, though the pace of AI development leaves the scope of its influence uncertain.
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