Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical has arrived. Providing Wisdom for Big Tech, Governments and You

From his earliest days in office, Pope Leo XIV has made talking about AI a priority in his papacy. On Monday, he released his first book under the name Magnifica Humanitas (which translates to the Magnificent Humanity) — a powerful 42,300-word document calling for technological regulation and an ethical framework that protects humanity for future generations.

The 70-year-old American Pope, a mathematician by training, was elected to the papacy in May 2025 and has committed to “protecting man in the age of artificial intelligence,” as the encyclical’s subtitle reads, the main teaching of his first year in office.

The publication of this document comes at a time when many are comparing the industrial revolution to its impact on our work and lifestyles. AI companies including OpenAI and Anthropic are growing and improving the capabilities of their models at extraordinary rates, fueling the fires of ongoing debate about whether AI will be more beneficial or harmful to society.

In the midst of all this, Pope Leo identifies AI as “an important tool that requires vigilance,” challenging the concentration of power among technology companies and addressing developers directly on the ground. The document is wide-ranging, cautioning against the use of AI in warfare and work, and is likely to become a foundational document as policy makers and technology companies shape their strategies for building and controlling the technology in the coming years.

One message in the text that is already drawing attention is Pope Leo’s call to “liberate AI.” While this may sound like a warning against the military use of artificial intelligence, it goes much further than that.

“Disarming means rejecting the assumption that technological power automatically grants the right to rule,” the Pope wrote. “Disarming does not mean rejecting technology, but preventing it from ruling humanity. It means freeing technology from the control of one person and opening it up to discussions and debates, therefore making it friendly to people and returning it to the plurality of people’s cultures and ways of life.”

What the Pope’s letter says about our use of AI

This encyclical is more than just a message to tech companies and the Catholic Church. Instead the Pope seems to be speaking to all of humanity, prioritizing “the equal dignity of all people,” “the highest value of human rights” and “building the common good.” For Catholics and non-Catholics alike, Magnifica Humanitas presents the visions of people around the world to come together as AI becomes an ever-increasing presence in our lives.

Pope cautions against allowing those who control AI to decide and set ethical frameworks for managing the technology. Instead, he says, the ethics of AI should be subject to “shared standards of social justice” and openly discussed among all people. “More behavioral AI is not enough if that behavior is dictated by a few,” he writes. In other words, we should all have a say about the role of AI in our world.

He also has thoughts on how we should approach our use of AI. The speed and ease of use of AI tools may be attractive, he says. But they can also “encourage overconfidence and the search for ready-made answers, and weaken personal intelligence and judgment.”

AI simulations of good human interaction can be fascinating and useful at times, he adds. “However, for users with little understanding, it can also be misleading, creating the illusion of a relationship with the real personal subject.” This is especially dangerous, he adds, when simulations of care and support occur in situations where real human responsibilities do not exist.

“Here, the danger is not that a person may believe that he is communicating with another person, but rather that he may lose the desire to build real human connections,” the Pope wrote.