Pope Leo XIV warned of the negative effects that artificial intelligence (AI) can have in the “intellectual and neurological development” of the new generations and asked to deal with the “loss of the sense of the human” that our societies experience.
“We are all concerned about children and young people, and the possible consequences of the use of AI in their intellectual and neurological development,” said the Holy Father in the message he sent this Friday to the participants of the second annual conference on artificial intelligence, ethics and business governance, held on June 19 and 20 in Rome.
Receive the main news of ACI Press by WhatsApp and Telegram
It is increasingly difficult to see Catholic news on social networks. Subscribe to our free channels today:
“Our young people should be helped – not hipped – on their way to maturity and true responsibility,” he added.
Similarly, he said that young people are the “hope for the future” and that the welfare of society “depends on being given the possibility of developing the gifts and abilities that God has given them.”
Thus, according to the message made by the Vatican press office, the Holy Father said that although never before a generation had “as immediate to as much information as now”, this should not be confused with the ability to understand the functioning of the world.
“Access to data, however vast, should not be confused with intelligence,” he said.
He added: “Authentic wisdom has more to do with recognizing the true meaning of life than with the availability of data.”
Similarly, he warned that AI can also “be misused for the selfish benefit of a few or, worse, to foster conflict and aggression.”
At the beginning of his message, written in English and dated June 17, the Pontiff remarked the “urgent need” to carry out “a serious reflection and a permanent debate about the ethically intrinsic dimension of AI, as well as on his responsible governance.”
Leo XIV welcomed with special pleasure that the second day of this meeting has been developed in the Apostolic Palace, and said it is “a clear indication of the desire of the Church to participate in these debates.”
The ethical force of new technologies lies in “the intentions of those who handle them”
The Pontiff resumed the words Of his predecessor, Pope Francis, remembering that, despite being “an exceptional product of human genius, AI is above all a tool.” Therefore, “the tools point to human intelligence that has created them and extract much of their ethical strength of the intentions of those who handle them,” he said.
In any case, he acknowledged that, in many cases, AI has been used “positively and even noble to promote greater equity.” For example, in the uses that have been given in the field of health research and scientific discoveries.
The Holy Father stressed that the evaluation of the benefits or risks of AI should be made “in the light of the integral development of the human person and society”, as indicated by the recent Vatican document Old and fresh.
Loss of sensitivity to the human
“This implies considering the well -being of the person not only in material terms, but also intellectual and spiritual; it means safeguarding the inviolable dignity of each human person and respecting the cultural and spiritual wealth of the peoples of the world,” he insisted.
Faced with the enthusiasm for technological innovations, the Pope warned against a loss of sensitivity towards the human. “As Pope Francis pointed out, our societies are experiencing a certain ‘loss, or at least eclipse, of the human sense,” he recalled.
In this sense, it made clear the primary role of the Catholic Church to weigh the ramifications of AI in the light of the “integral development of the human person and its dignity” and cited again the antiqua et nova document: “Intelligence implies the opening of the person to the ultimate issues of life and reflects an orientation towards truth and good.”
Leo XIV also expressed his hope that the deliberations of this meeting that concludes today include a reflection on intergenerational role in ethical formation. “I hope that their deliberations also consider AI within the context of a necessary intergenerational learning, which allows young people to integrate truth into their moral and spiritual life,” he concluded.
Victoria Cardiel
Victoria Cardiel is a journalist specialized in social and religious information issues. Since 2013, he has covered all the news of the Vatican for various media, such as the Spanish news agency Europa Press, or the weekly of the Archdiocese of Madrid, Alfa and Omega.