Pope Leo XIV Challenges Leaders to Put Human Dignity First in the Age of AI

On Friday, 21 August 2026, Pope Leo XIV addressed participants in the meeting of the International Catholic Legislators Network at Clementine Hall. In his address, the Pope spoke about one of the decisive questions of our generation: how should we use artificial intelligence?

Pope Leo returned to themes explored in Magnifica Humanitas, his first encyclical, signed on 15 May 2026. The encyclical, whose title means “Magnificent Humanity”, considers how the rapid development of artificial intelligence is affecting people and society and how technology can remain at the service of humanity.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is developing at extraordinary speed, but while it can bring enormous benefits, Pope Leo says that the key question is not simply “What can we do?” but “What ought we to do?” According to Pope Leo, humanity faces a choice: either allow power, efficiency and control to dominate, or build a society in which technology serves the development and dignity of every person.

The Pope called on legislators to guide technological development wisely, rather than simply preventing innovation. Laws should protect privacy and fundamental freedoms, prevent exploitation, ensure transparency and strengthen democratic institutions. He called for “robust legal frameworks, independent oversight, informed users and a political system that does not abdicate its responsibility”.

Pope Leo also warned about new forms of inequality and dependence, leaving poorer nations increasingly reliant on wealthier ones.

Algorithms can determine who is heard and who remains invisible, while digital platforms can shape public discussion without sufficient accountability. Workers, too, must not be reduced to something that can simply be optimised by technology. For Pope Leo, these developments reveal an old danger in a new form: the temptation to seek power, control and mastery without the responsibility to serve others.

The Pope connected this challenge with the family. He said that AI must never undermine the family by reducing relationships to data and simulations, exposing young people to harmful content or making family life economically precarious. He encouraged legislators to strengthen marriage and families, support parents in their educational mission and help young people look to the future with confidence.

Against a culture of power and control, the Church proposes a “civilisation of love” — a society where technology is guided by wisdom, compassion and responsibility. “Only then,” concluded Pope Leo, “will artificial intelligence become not a rival to humanity but a servant of the common good.”