Pope Leo identifies AI as main challenge in first meeting with cardinals

New pontiff sets retired vision, pledging to proceed ‘precious bequest of predecessor Pope Francis.

Pope Leo XIV has held his archetypal gathering with the world’s cardinals since his predetermination arsenic the caput of the Catholic Church, identifying artificial intelligence (AI) as 1 of the astir important issues facing humanity.

Leo, the archetypal American pope, laid retired a imaginativeness of his papacy astatine the Vatican connected Saturday, telling the cardinals who elected him that AI poses challenges to defending “human dignity, justness and labour” – a presumption shared with his predecessor, the precocious Pope Francis.

Explaining his prime of name, the pontiff said helium identified with the precocious Leo XIII, who had defended workers’ rights during his 1878-1903 papacy astatine the dawn of the concern age, adding that “social teaching” was present needed successful effect to the modern-day gyration brought by AI.

The precocious Pope Francis, who died past month, warned that AI risked turning quality relations into specified algorithms and called for an planetary pact to modulate it.

Francis warned the Group of Seven industrialised nations past twelvemonth that AI indispensable stay human-centric, truthful that decisions astir erstwhile to usage weapons oregon adjacent less-lethal tools would not autumn to machines.

In his speech, delivered successful Italian, Pope Leo made repeated references to Francis and the mourning over his death, saying the precocious pontiff near a “precious legacy” and signalling that helium would proceed with his vision.

China controversy

Francis was pope for 12 years and often garnered disapproval from blimpish cardinals, who said helium was watering down the Church’s doctrine connected issues specified arsenic the inclusion of LGBTQ Catholics and women’s leadership.

Leo, the erstwhile US Cardinal Robert Prevost, was a comparative chartless connected the planetary stage, earlier helium was elected pontiff, who spent astir of his vocation arsenic a missionary successful Peru earlier serving arsenic a elder Vatican official.

Saturday’s gathering took spot successful the aforesaid tiny Vatican auditorium wherever the cardinals had been gathering successful the days earlier the conclave to sermon who should beryllium the adjacent pope.

Czech Cardinal Dominik Duka was cited by the Reuters quality bureau arsenic saying the concern of Catholics successful communist China had been raised arsenic an issue.

The Vatican and China successful 2018 signed a arguable woody connected the assignment of bishops successful the country, which gives Beijing immoderate input into their selection.

Conservatives person attacked the still-secret woody arsenic a sellout, but Duka told Reuters it was indispensable to support dialog unfastened successful places wherever the Church is oppressed.