Pope Says Slower Pace of Developing AI Might Be Needed to Protect the Human Family

Pope Leo XIV waves to the faithful at the end of the Pentecost Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican on May 24, 2026. Gregorio Borgia/APPope Leo XIV published a document on May 25 that calls for robust regulation and independent oversight of artificial intelligence (AI) and for AI developers not to lose sight of the common good in their quest for profit and technological dominance.“Magnifica Humanitas” (“Magnificent Humanity”) is the U.S.-born pope’s first encyclical and is the Vatican’s first entry into the AI debate.