Pope Leo XIV Urges Global AI Regulation Amid Political Pushback

Pope Leo XIV urged political and industry leaders to address the catastrophic risks of artificial intelligence during an in-flight news conference on September 28 and 29 while returning to Rome from France. The pontiff stated that expert warnings regarding AI going rogue are not "fake news" and must be taken seriously, though he clarified he is not in "panic mode." These remarks follow the publication of his encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, which calls for broad regulation of the technology to ensure it does not destroy humanity.

The Pope's position directly contradicts that of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has dismissed AI threats as a "hoax" and a "conspiracy." Trump argues that restricting development would benefit China, a view he maintained during a meeting in Washington with Chinese President Xi Jinping. While the two leaders agreed to explore a notification mechanism for national security incidents, Xi emphasized that AI must remain under human control.

Industry reactions remain divided. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang argued that market forces should manage safety rather than government laws, coinciding with Nvidia's release of Sentry, a tool to monitor autonomous AI agents. Conversely, leaders from OpenAI and Anthropic have expressed safety concerns, with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warning of potential AI-led internet takeovers and calling for a slowdown in model development. To coordinate these efforts, the Vatican has organized a commission on AI to promote global dialogue on the technology's ethical and social consequences.