The Vatican moves into AI diplomacy

Pope Leo XIV’s first AI encyclical positions the Catholic Church inside a widening international struggle over how artificial intelligence should be governed, regulated and constrained.

Pope Leo XIV signs "Magnifica Humanitas" as the Church’s response to the challenges posed by AI on May 25, 2026. (Vatican News)

The Vatican is attempting to shape the moral language surrounding artificial intelligence before the international rules harden.

In Magnifica Humanitas, the first encyclical of his papacy, Pope Leo XIV warned on Monday that artif…