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On October 30, 2026, Pope Leo XIV, in his Friday papal address, called for the "disarming" of AI and urged UN member states to "take concrete steps to prohibit lethal autonomous weapons" at next month's Geneva conference. He stressed that "machines are tools, not persons," warning that AI systems should not be granted rights or legal personality, and that decisions involving human life, freedom, and the use of force must always remain under effective human oversight. The following day, cognitive scientist Gary Marcus recounted his experience of meeting Pope Leo XIV, endorsing his five points on AI, including that the future of AI is not predetermined, that machines are tools rather than persons, that decisions involving life and freedom must not be delegated to AI, that intelligent technology should serve the common good, and that international institutions capable of implementing ethical principles are urgently needed; the Pope also called on nations to push for a ban on lethal autonomous weapons at the November Geneva conference.
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Gary Marcus recounts meeting Pope Leo XIV: the future of AI is not predetermined; machines are merely toolsDevelopments
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Oct 31
Gary Marcus：The Road to AI We Can Trust
Gary Marcus recounts meeting Pope Leo XIV: the future of AI is not predetermined; machines are merely tools
Cognitive scientist Gary Marcus recounted his experience of meeting Pope Leo XIV and endorsed the latter's five propositions on AI: the future of AI is not predetermined, machines are tools rather than people, decisions involving life and freedom must not be handed over to AI, intelligent technology should serve the common good, and there is an urgent need for international institutions capable of implementing ethical principles. The Pope also called on countries to push for a ban on lethal autonomous weapons at the November conference in Geneva.
Oct 30
Unite.AI
Pope Leo XIV calls for "disarming" AI, urges ban on lethal autonomous weapons
In an audience on October 30 with participants of a joint conference of the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Future of Life Institute, Pope Leo XIV called for the "disarming" of artificial intelligence and urged nations meeting in Geneva in November to take concrete steps to ban lethal autonomous weapons. He put forward five considerations, emphasizing that machines are tools rather than persons, that decisions concerning human life, freedom, and the use of force must always remain under effective human oversight, and that AI development should not become a race. These remarks derive from his encyclical "Magnifica Humanitas," issued on May 15, 2026.
The Verge AI
Pope Leo calls for disarming AI: “Machines are tools, not people”
In his papal address on Friday, Pope Leo XIV called for the “disarming” of AI and urged UN member states to “take concrete steps to ban lethal autonomous weapons” at next month’s Geneva conference. He stressed that “machines are tools, not people,” warning that AI systems should not be granted rights or legal personhood, and that decisions involving human life, freedom, and the use of force must always remain under effective human oversight.
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