Delivering his message on Saturday to mark the World Day of Social Communications, the pontiff said AI systems mirror the worldview of their creators and reproduce biases embedded in the data they process.
“The challenge… is a matter of protecting human identity and authentic relationships,” Pope Leo XIV declared.
His warning comes as generative AI rapidly advances, producing images, music, and text that are often indistinguishable from human-made works.
In 2023, his predecessor Pope Francis was the subject of a viral fake AI image showing him in a white puffer jacket.
Since then, AI-generated content has become a popular tool among public figures, including U.S. President Donald Trump, who has shared computer-generated images on his social media accounts.
Pope Leo XIV cautioned that only a handful of companies control much of AI’s development, increasing “the difficulty of distinguishing between reality and simulation.”
Consistent Warnings Since Election
Since his election last May as the first pope from the United States, Leo XIV has consistently raised concerns about AI’s influence.
He criticised systems that present statistical probability as reliable knowledge, arguing that such tools provide only approximations rather than truth.
“The challenge ahead is to establish effective governance and to educate young people about how algorithms influence perceptions of reality,” he said.
Last month, Pope Leo XIV condemned the accelerating use of AI in military applications. He warned against delegating life-and-death decisions to machines, stressing that such responsibilities must remain firmly in human hands.
His latest message reinforces the Vatican’s call for ethical oversight and global cooperation to ensure AI serves humanity rather than undermines it.
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