Pope Leo XIV tells AI scientists that machines are tools, not persons, and some decisions must stay human

Pope Leo XIV used an audience at the Vatican on October 30 to set out where he believes the limits of artificial intelligence should lie. He was speaking in the Apostolic Palace's Consistory Hall to scientists and experts from several countries taking part in "The Future of AI: A Dialogue between the Vatican and the Scientific World", a one-day meeting jointly organised by the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Future of Life Institute, a non-profit that campaigns on risks from advanced technology.

Tools, not persons

The central line of the speech, published in full by the Holy See, was that "machines are tools, not persons". The pope argued that AI systems have no body, lived experience or inner understanding, and he warned against proposals to give them rights or legal personhood. Doing so, he said, would obscure who is responsible when things go wrong and could leave people harmed by AI facing an entity with no face.

He also said the direction of AI is not predetermined but depends on human choices, so societies must be able to steer, change or refuse particular uses. In his view a dependable system that serves people is worth more than a more powerful one whose effects cannot be anticipated or controlled.

Decisions that should not be delegated

According to Vatican News, the pope said decisions affecting life, freedom and the use of force must remain under effective, informed and responsible human oversight. He gave the examples of a person being added to a target list or a border control database, where individuals risk being reduced to data points. He said AI must be "disarmed" and urged the states meeting in Geneva in November to take concrete steps toward a ban on lethal autonomous weapons.

Institutions over principles

Leo XIV said the ethical principles are already broadly known and that what is missing are institutions able to apply them. He called for shared international standards, independent oversight, clear accountability and remedies for people who suffer harm, so that AI-driven decisions can be examined and challenged. He also asked that the benefits of the technology be shared fairly rather than serving a privileged few.

The address builds on earlier statements, including his encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, which EWTN News says he drew on, and Pope Francis's 2024 remarks to the G7. The speech sets out moral positions and has no legal force; whether it influences the Geneva talks on autonomous weapons remains to be seen.