Pope Leo Issues Encyclical Urging AI Regulation and Ethical Oversight, Joined by Anthropic Co-founder

Pope Leo XIV on May 25 released his first encyclical, titled "Magnifica Humanitas," calling for robust global regulation of artificial intelligence to protect humanity from the technology’s disruptive effects. The document, reported to run to more than 42,000 words, warns of widespread job displacement, the potential for AI to fuel conflicts and geopolitical tensions, and the risk that autonomous weapons systems could operate beyond human control.

Alongside the pope at the Vatican, Chris Olah, a co-founder of AI company Anthropic, urged that the direction of AI development should not be left solely to technology firms. Olah emphasized the need for oversight from religious leaders, governments, and civil society, warning that commercial and geopolitical pressures on AI labs can conflict with broader societal interests. He highlighted urgent concerns including job losses, the equitable global distribution of AI’s benefits, and the challenges of interpreting complex AI system behaviour.

The encyclical and the joint Vatican appearance underscore a growing convergence of ethical, religious and technical voices seeking new global rules and institutions to govern advanced AI systems.