Pope Leo XIV called for artificial intelligence to be "disarmed" during the release of a new papal manifesto in Vatican City on Monday [1, 2].

The move signals a significant escalation in the Vatican's approach to emerging technology, shifting from general ethical guidelines to a demand for concrete limitations on AI capabilities.

In the manifesto, the Pope urged for stronger regulation of AI technologies to protect human dignity [2, 4]. He warned that the current trajectory of development creates a culture of power that could make remote warfare more feasible and frequent [4].

"We must disarm artificial intelligence before it dominates humanity," the Pope said [2].

The call for "disarmament" has sparked debate over the specific nature of the request. Some reports suggest the Pope is calling for an immediate halt to certain AI capabilities, while others describe the plea as a demand for robust regulation to prevent the technology from dominating human life [2, 4].

Regardless of the specific mechanism, the Pope emphasized that the global community must act to ensure technology does not override human agency. He said the world needs robust regulation of AI to prevent a culture of power that fuels remote warfare [4].

This manifesto arrives as international governments struggle to create a unified legal framework for generative AI, and autonomous weapons systems. The Vatican's position highlights a growing concern among global moral leaders that the pace of innovation is outstripping the development of necessary safety and ethical guardrails [2, 3].

“"We must disarm artificial intelligence before it dominates humanity."”

The Vatican is positioning itself as a moral counterbalance to the rapid commercial and military adoption of AI. By using the term 'disarmament,' Pope Leo XIV is framing AI not merely as a tool requiring a policy update, but as a potential weapon of mass destabilization that requires a global treaty similar to nuclear non-proliferation efforts.