Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, is emerging as a test of how one of the world’s oldest moral authorities will respond to the disruptive rise of artificial intelligence, and how far Silicon Valley can shape that response.
Spring lobbying ahead of the encyclical
In the months leading up to the document, major tech firms quietly intensified their presence in Rome. On April 29, representatives from Meta, Google, and Amazon joined Father Eric Salobir in the Vatican, crossing St. Peter’s Square for a brief encounter with Pope Leo XIV before hours of discussion at the French embassy to the Holy See on “child protection in the age of artificial intelligence.”1 These meetings formed part of what observers describe as a broader lobbying push by the tech industry to influence the Church’s position on AI.1
Vatican officials, including communications chief Paolo Ruffini, have been hearing Silicon Valley’s argument that companies should be treated as partners in the “ethical development of AI,” even as the Church weighs the technology’s impact on the global economy, the workplace, and daily life.1
Drafting a moral response to AI
Behind the scenes, cardinals, experts, diplomats, and business leaders all contributed input as the Vatican prepared the encyclical, which will set out the Catholic Church’s formal stance on artificial intelligence.1 French official Sarah El Haïry compared its potential reach to Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum, a foundational text on workers’ rights during the Industrial Revolution.1
Signed on May 15, the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum, Magnifica Humanitas is expected to condemn AI-directed warfare and address threats to workers’ rights, echoing the pope’s recent warning that AI-enabled combat risks a “spiral of annihilation.”2
A highly symbolic launch
On May 25, Pope Leo XIV will personally present Magnifica Humanitas at the Vatican’s Synod Hall, breaking with the tradition of delegating such events to cardinals and press officials.2 In a striking signal to both Church and industry, one of the main speakers will be Anthropic co‑founder Christopher Olah, who leads the company’s interpretability research.2
By inviting a leading AI scientist to the stage of a papal encyclical launch, Leo XIV is positioning Magnifica Humanitas not only as theological guidance for 1.4 billion Catholics, but as a direct intervention in the global debate over how AI should be governed.2