Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
Pope Leo XIV is poised to thrust the Vatican into the center of the global artificial intelligence debate on Monday with the unveiling of a landmark AI manifesto targeted at confronting the ethical, social, and moral dangers of rapidly evolving technology.
The highly anticipated document is expected to outline the Catholic Church’s vision for the responsible development of AI, as concerns mount worldwide over issues ranging from misinformation and surveillance to job displacement and the unchecked power of tech companies.
The document, titled “Magnifica Humanitas” (“Magnificent Humanity”), will be formally presented in the presence of the Pope, an unprecedented move for a papal encyclical presentation.
The event will also feature senior Vatican officials and international technology experts, including the co-founder of US-based AI company Anthropic, which is currently involved in legal disputes with the US military over restrictions on the use of its Claude AI model in autonomous weapons and surveillance systems.
Pope Leo XIV has regularly warned against the militarisation of artificial intelligence, particularly systems that could make life-and-death decisions without human oversight.
“Delegating decisions concerning the life and death of human beings to machines” is, according to him, a “destructive spiral,” a position he has repeatedly reiterated since becoming the first US-born pontiff.
The Pope has also raised concerns about AI’s broader societal impact, including the “gradual replacement of reality by its simulation” and the environmental cost of the global competition for rare earth minerals needed for advanced electronics.
The Vatican says the new encyclical builds on its long-standing social teaching tradition, tracing back to Rerum Novarum by Leo XIII, which addressed the social consequences of the Industrial Revolution.
Experts believe Magnifica Humanitas could have global influence comparable to Pope Francis’ Laudato Si, which shaped international climate policy discussions after its release in 2015.
According to the United Nations, the AI industry could reach a value of $4.8 trillion by 2033, but with wealth concentrated among a few dominant players.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned that “the window is closing to shape AI for peace, for justice, for humanity.”
Pope Leo XIV has made AI ethics a central theme of his papacy, calling for stronger “digital literacy” and global awareness of how algorithms influence human perception.
He has warned that AI systems could fuel “polarisation, conflict, fear, and violence,” and criticised the lack of transparency in algorithmic design used by modern platforms.
The Vatican says the encyclical is designed as a powerful call to action, urging governments, global institutions, and technology giants to place human dignity at the heart of the artificial intelligence revolution.
