Pope calls for ‘disarming’ of AI, technology should be ‘human friendly’

Pope Leo called for the ‘disarming’ of artificial intelligence, and warned of ‘new forms of slavery’ behind its rise

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Pope Leo XIV attends the presentation of his first Encyclical Letter ‘Magnifica Humanitas’, focused on the rise of artificial intelligence, in The Vatican on Monday. Photo: AFP

Co-founder of US artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic, Christopher Olah, shakes hands with Pope Leo XIV before the presentation of the first Encyclical Letter ‘Magnifica Humanitas’, focused on the rise of artificial intelligence, in The Vatican on Monday. Photo: AFP

Published: 6:31pm, 25 May 2026

Pope Leo called for the “disarming” of artificial intelligence in his long-awaited manifesto on the rapidly developing technology on Monday, and warned of “new forms of slavery” behind its rise.

The “just war” theory – espoused recently by the Trump administration – was “outdated”, Pope Leo XIV wrote in his first encyclical, which he presented in person at the Vatican, alongside AI experts including the co-founder of US giant Anthropic.

The first US pope, who has clashed with the White House over the Iran war and its use of religion to justify conflict, sounded the alarm over AI-directed weaponry, saying it was “not permissible to entrust lethal” decisions to tech.

US giant Anthropic, which has staked its position as an ethical AI company, is embroiled in a legal battle with the US military after opposing the use of its technology for lethal autonomous warfare and mass surveillance.

Without naming US President Donald Trump, Leo stressed it was “important to reaffirm that the ‘just war’ theory, which has all too often been used to justify any kind of war, is now outdated”.

Co-founder of US artificial intelligence (AI) company Anthropic, Christopher Olah, attends the presentation of Pope Leo’s first Encyclical Letter ‘Magnifica Humanitas’, focused on the rise of artificial intelligence, in the Vatican on Monday. Photo: AFP

“No algorithm can make war morally acceptable,” he added.

Pope calls for ‘disarming’ of AI, technology should be ‘human friendly’

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Pope Leo called for the ‘disarming’ of artificial intelligence, and warned of ‘new forms of slavery’ behind its rise

Pope Leo called for the ‘disarming’ of artificial intelligence, and warned of ‘new forms of slavery’ behind its rise