Pope Leo calls for being ‘profoundly human’ in the age of AI

Pope Leo XIV just dropped his first encyclical, and it's all about AI. The document, called Magnifica Humanitas, tackles how we protect humanity in the age of artificial intelligence.

The pope isn't holding back on the risks. He specifically calls out AI-powered warfare, the impact on jobs and labor, and warns that we're moving too fast without proper legal and ethical guardrails in place.

His main concern is economic and social upheaval. The rapid adoption of AI is creating massive changes, and according to the pope, we don't have adequate protections for individuals. That lack of protection threatens human dignity itself.

This matters because religious institutions still shape policy debates worldwide. When the Catholic Church takes a formal position on AI governance, it influences how over a billion people think about these tools, and it adds pressure on lawmakers to act.

The timing is notable too. We're seeing AI capabilities accelerate while regulatory frameworks lag behind. The pope's encyclical is essentially a call to slow down and think about the human cost before we automate everything.

Whether you're religious or not, the core question applies to anyone building with or deploying AI: are we moving too fast to consider the consequences? The Vatican clearly thinks so.