Pope Leo XIV AI Working Group Ahead of First Encyclical
Pope Leo XIV announced a Vatican AI working group on May 16, days after signing his first encyclical on artificial intelligence set for release on May 25.
TL;DR: Pope Leo XIV announced a Vatican AI working group on May 16, days after signing his first encyclical on artificial intelligence set for release on May 25. The move coincides with a legal dispute involving Anthropic, whose AI technology faces restrictions from the Trump administration.
Context
The Holy See said on May 16 that Pope Leo XIV created a commission to study artificial intelligence. The commission brings together officials from seven Vatican departments, including the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Pontifical Academy for Life. It will coordinate AI activities, share information, set internal rules, and examine AI’s effects on humanity.
Pope Leo XIV signed the encyclical, titled *Magnifica Humanitas* (Magnificent Humanity), on May 15. The Vatican will present the encyclical publicly on May 25 in the Synod Hall. The Pope chose May 15 to mark the 135th anniversary of *Rerum Novarum*, the 1891 encyclical that laid the foundation of Catholic social teaching during the industrial revolution. He has repeatedly compared the industrial revolution to today’s digital revolution, saying AI raises similar questions about human dignity, work, justice, and peace.
The Vatican has previously engaged with AI ethics through the Rome Call for AI Ethics in 2020, which attracted support from Microsoft, IBM, and Cisco. Since then, it has issued guidelines covering AI use in defense, education, and health, stressing that technology should complement human intelligence rather than replace it.
Pope Leo XIV, a former mathematics student and member of the Augustinian order, has spoken about AI’s impact on truth and beauty, warning against deepfakes and the use of AI to write homilies.
Key Facts
On May 15 Pope Leo XIV signed his first encyclical, *Magnifica Humanitas*. On May 16 the Holy See announced the establishment of a Vatican AI working group. The Vatican will present the encyclical on May 25 at 11:30 AM in the Synod Hall. The working group includes representatives from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Pontifical Academy for Life, and the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, among others. In February 2026 the Trump administration barred U.S. agencies from using Anthropic’s AI after the company refused to allow unrestricted military use of its technology. Anthropic’s co‑founder Christopher Olah will attend the encyclical presentation as a speaker.
What It Means
The Vatican’s new working group signals an effort to bring AI discussions into its policy process, aligning with the themes expected in the encyclical. By linking AI to the legacy of *Rerum Novarum*, the Pope frames the technology as a modern social question rather than a purely technical one. The inclusion of Anthropic’s Christopher Olah, despite the company’s legal clash with the U.S. government, shows the Vatican’s willingness to engage with AI developers who emphasize safety and interpretability. The working group’s focus on setting internal AI use rules could influence how Catholic institutions adopt or limit the technology in areas such as education, health care, and communications.
Watch for the encyclical’s release on May 25 and any subsequent statements from the working group on specific AI guidelines for the Holy See.
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