Pope Leo XIV demands 'disarming' of AI in first encyclical - 42,000 words on opportunities, risks, and human dignity
What it really says
On May 25, 2026, Pope Leo XIV presented his first encyclical 'Magnifica Humanitas' (Magnificent Humanity) at the Vatican - a 42,300-word document subtitled 'On Safeguarding the Human Person in the Time of Artificial Intelligence'. The document was signed on May 15, exactly 135 years after Leo XIII's social encyclical 'Rerum Novarum' on workers' rights. In the encyclical, Leo XIV warns that AI risks widening inequality, weakening democracy, and undermining what it means to be human. He calls for AI to be 'disarmed': the technology must be decoupled from military and purely commercial power interests. The Pope proposes an international ethics code and demands stricter national and international regulation of AI companies. At the same time, he emphasizes that technology is 'not inherently antagonistic to humanity' and 'not inherently evil' - but also 'never neutral, because it takes on the characteristics of those who devise, finance, regulate, and use it'. Notably, Christopher Olah, co-founder of AI company Anthropic, attended the Vatican presentation alongside cardinals and theologians - a first for the unveiling of a papal encyclical.
Our assessment
This encyclical is remarkable because it neither descends into AI panic nor embraces naive techno-optimism. The Pope acknowledges AI's benefits while naming concrete dangers: power concentration among a few tech corporations, autonomous weapons systems, and the displacement of human labor. The call to 'disarm' AI sounds dramatic but at its core means something reasonable: AI should serve the common good, not primarily the geopolitical or commercial dominance of individual actors. The presence of Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah shows the Vatican seeks dialogue with industry rather than criticizing from the outside. For people worried about AI, the encyclical offers something important: validation that their concerns are taken seriously - by one of the world's most influential moral authorities. At the same time, one must remain realistic: an encyclical is not a law. Its impact depends on whether governments and companies pick up the impulse.
Relevance for Germany
For Germany, the encyclical is relevant for several reasons. Germany has around 22 million Catholics - the encyclical reaches a broad public beyond the tech bubble. The call for international AI regulation strengthens the EU's position, which has already created the world's most ambitious regulatory framework with the AI Act. The Pope explicitly emphasizes workers' rights in the AI age - this supports the positions of German trade unions and works councils insisting on co-determination in AI deployment. Additionally, the encyclical addresses power concentration among a few US tech corporations - a central topic in the German debate on digital sovereignty. The Handelsblatt already headlined: 'The Pope offers an answer to the power of tech corporations'. Heise and t3n also reported extensively.
Fact check
The encyclical 'Magnifica Humanitas' is available as full text on the Vatican's official website and at the National Catholic Register. The date (signed May 15, 2026, presented May 25), length (42,300 words), and the attendance of Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah are consistently reported by Time, NPR, Heise, Handelsblatt, and Vatican News. The connection to the 135th anniversary of Rerum Novarum is verifiable by date. Anthropic published a statement by Chris Olah on the encyclical on their own website.
Source
- • https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/encyclicals/documents/20260515-magnifica-humanitas.html
- • https://www.ncregister.com/cna/full-text-magnifica-humanitas
- • https://www.heise.de/news/Erste-Enzyklika-Papst-fordert-Richtlinien-fuer-Umgang-mit-KI-11305600.html
- • https://www.anthropic.com/news/chris-olah-pope-leo-encyclical