Pope Leo XIV released his first encyclical, 'Magnifica Humanitas,' signed on May 15. The 40,000-word document calls for AI to be 'freed from logics that turn it into an instrument of domination, exclusion, and death' and contains critiques of AI-powered autonomous weapons, data collection practices, and the hoarding of patents, algorithms, digital platforms, technological infrastructure, and data.
The encyclical argues that AI systems 'merely imitate certain functions of human intelligence' and 'do not undergo experiences, do not possess a body, do not feel joy or pain, do not mature through relationships, and do not know from within what love, work, friendship, or responsibility mean.' Leo contends that 'disarmament' of AI—freeing it from monopolistic control and opening it to discussion—is necessary to restore it to service of human flourishing rather than domination.
Pope Leo cites Tolkien's *Lord of the Rings* (quoting Gandalf, though the encyclical does not name the character) on the importance of local moral action: 'It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set.' He calls on readers to become 'artisans of hope' and commit to 'building the worksite of our time.'
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