The Pope’s Admirers Are Missing Something Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, addresses AI dangers but more significantly critiques societal paradigms that prioritize technology and economics over human value. The Pope highlights the exploitation inherent in AI’s creation and use, implicating consumers in this system. Ultimately, the encyclical asserts that humanity’s magnificence stems from its divine creation, not technological advancement, posing the fundamental question of what it truly means to be human in the digital age.

• Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas” addresses AI dangers but focuses more broadly on societal issues.
• The Pope criticizes the exploitation of workers, including children, in the production of materials for AI technology.
• The encyclical implicates consumers who demand effortless data and convenience, blaming them for complicity in exploitative systems.
• It argues that AI has accelerated pre-existing societal issues rooted in misplaced faith in technology, economics, and individualism.
• Leo calls for building a “civilization of love” through small acts of fidelity, contrasting it with the Tower of Babel.
• The core message emphasizes that humanity’s inherent value comes from being made in God’s likeness, a quality no AI can replicate.
• The encyclical challenges readers to consider the fundamental question: What does it mean to be human?