Overview
- On Friday, October 30, the pope told participants at the Vatican conference 'The Future of AI' that technology must be governed by effective human oversight, shared rules and clear accountability.
- He rejected granting legal personhood or rights to AI systems, saying machines are tools and that responsibility for harms must remain with human designers and operators.
- The pope called explicitly for steps toward banning lethal autonomous weapons, defined as systems that can select or attack targets without adequate human intervention.
- His statements built on the May encyclical Magnifica Humanitas and were delivered at an event co‑organized by the Pontifical Academy for Life and the Future of Life Institute.
- The Vatican is using moral authority to press states and civil society ahead of the November Geneva talks, a move that could shape disarmament negotiation agendas and industry practices around AI safety.