In the AI revolution, Leo XIV wants a third way between Terminator and Wall-E
Leo XIV signed his first encyclical on May 15, exactly 135 years after Leo XIII’s Rerum novarum was issued. The new encyclical is highly anticipated by the Church and the wider world, especially after the pontiff cited his predecessor’s influence as a reason for choosing the name Leo XIV. No successor encyclical has yet been released for the current era, leaving the new document as the first major papal statement in recent years.
5 months ago
Leo XIV’s first encyclical, released on May 15 2026, marks a historic moment in the Catholic Church’s engagement with artificial intelligence. While the document does not yet appear in full, the Pope has signaled a desire for a “third way” that avoids the dystopian extremes of a Terminator‑style future and the naïve optimism of a Wall‑E scenario, positioning the Church as a moderating voice in the AI debate 1.
Leo XIV issued his inaugural encyclical exactly 135 years after Leo XIII promulgated Rerum novarum, the landmark social teaching that inspired his papal name. The timing underscores a continuity of social concern, now extended to emerging technologies 1.
The Pope’s remarks frame AI as a transformative force that must be guided by moral responsibility.
Instead, Leo XIV calls for a balanced approach that integrates human dignity, stewardship, and the common good into AI development and deployment 1.
The encyclical is expected to influence policymakers, technologists, and faith communities worldwide. By articulating a middle path, the Vatican aims to shape global AI governance, encouraging frameworks that protect vulnerable populations while fostering innovation 1.
Encyclical Leo XIV: Catholic ethical stance on emerging AI technologies
There is no text of an “encyclical Leo XIV” on AI included in the provided materials. What is provided are multiple high-level Vatican interventions and Catholic-policy documents that collectively express the Church’s ethical stance on emerging AI technologies—especially Pope Leo XIV’s repeated themes of human dignity, moral discernment, human oversight, truth, and the protection of the vulnerable.
Across the texts, AI is not treated as an autonomous moral actor or a neutral force; it is evaluated by whether it serves the human person and the common good. Pope Leo XIV frames this as essential for “true progress,” insisting that dignity and the common good must remain “resolute priorities.”
A key moral claim is that the human person possesses an “ontological dignity… simply because… [they] exists and is willed, created, and loved by God,” and therefore healthcare (and those who use AI in healthcare) must act as “guardians and servants of human life.”
In the same ethical frame, Pope Leo XIV warns that technological development can become destructive if it is placed at the service of “antihuman ideologies,” and that the power of tools increases the stakes of moral governance.
The Church’s ethical position distinguishes between what AI can simulate and what only persons can authentically do. On the governance of AI, a letter connected with Pope Leo XIV states that, while AI can mimic aspects of reasoning and perform tasks efficiently, it “cannot replicate moral discernment” or “the ability to form genuine relationships.”
From this follows a practical ethical requirement: development and use must be paired with respect for human and social values, and with “growth in human responsibility,” not merely “utility or efficiency.”
Pope Leo XIV applies the same logic specifically to medicine: AI must not “detract from the personal relationship between patients and healthcare providers,” because providing care emphasizes the “irreplaceable nature of human relationships,” and medical professionalism “can never be reduced merely to solving a problem.”
A consistent ethical theme is that AI needs human control and clearly defined accountability.
Oversight and responsibility AI “requires proper ethical management and regulatory frameworks,” centered on the human person and beyond efficiency alone.
Transparent accountability The U.S. Catholic bishops emphasize that AI systems must have “human oversight and well-defined accountability,” especially because AI can be used to undermine truth (including via deepfakes and misinformation).
Coordination of governance Pope Leo XIV encourages “coordinated local and global governance of AI” grounded in recognition of human dignity and fundamental freedoms.
Do not outsource “the last word” about persons While one of the strongest “do not delegate final decision-making to machines” statements in the provided materials appears in Pope Francis’s related AI remarks, Pope Leo XIV’s broader governance logic is aligned with this: the ethical bottom line is that decision-making about persons cannot be reduced to technical prediction.
A striking practical contribution from Pope Leo XIV is the insistence that AI ethics begins with education—not only professional training, but widespread “media, information and AI literacy” in education systems.
This literacy has several concrete ethical purposes:
Pope Leo XIV also connects these educational aims to Catholic participation: as Catholics, individuals—especially young people—should develop “freedom of spirit” and critical thinking, not only technical use.
The ethical stance consistently prioritizes those most at risk from technological power.
Pope Leo XIV highlights that AI raises ethical questions concerning the “protection of the dignity and wellbeing of minors.” Children are described as “particularly vulnerable to manipulation through AI algorithms” that can influence their decisions and preferences, so parents and educators must be aware and “tools be developed to monitor and guide.”
The U.S. bishops emphasize that AI must not widen vulnerability; they warn that without safeguards, AI could be used to perpetuate “marginalization and discrimination,” create “new forms of poverty,” worsen the “digital divide,” and increase inequality.
Related Church teaching language in the policy document frames technology as something that should serve justice and fraternity, while avoiding approaches that harm human formation.
Pope Leo XIV presents AI development itself as ethically significant because it expresses a view of humanity: each design choice carries a “vision of humanity,” and therefore builders must cultivate “moral discernment.”
He also rejects confinement of ethics to laboratories or investment plans: building AI must be “a profoundly ecclesial endeavor,” directed toward evangelization and the integral development of every person.
From the materials provided, the Church’s AI concerns concentrate in several high-stakes domains:
The bishops stress that labor has inherent worth and should not be reduced to efficiency calculations. They warn about job displacement, inequality, and exploitation, calling for protections, training, public accountability, and human oversight in AI-driven employment decisions.
AI can undermine human dignity and respect for truth, including via deepfakes and manipulation of news and information; thus systems require oversight and accountability to protect fair democratic processes.
The bishops explicitly raise concerns about “lethal autonomous weapons,” insisting that “human control” over any weapon system is essential to mitigate violations of rights.
Putting the provided materials together, the Church’s ethical stance on emerging AI technologies can be summarized as follows:
In short: the Catholic approach in these texts is pro-technology in the service of humanity, but fundamentally anti-technocratic—refusing any moral framework where AI’s capability determines human worth, decision-making, or relational life.