AI and Art: Léon XIV Demands Recognition

Pope Leo XIV publicly distinguishes human art from images generated by models and calls for the preservation of artists' creations. This stance, also developed in an encyclical in May, reportedly resisted lobbying efforts from Anthropic at the Vatican regarding non-human consciousness.

Anthropic reportedly lobbied the Vatican, with no clear success

According to the New York Times, Anthropic actively approached the Vatican to encourage it to reconsider its position on non-human consciousness. The newspaper reports that this attempt did not yield significant results. More broadly, AI companies are seeking to influence the stance taken by the Holy Father on these issues.

Leo XIV calls for the preservation of human creation in the face of AI

In a message posted on X one Friday morning, Pope Leo XIV urged the preservation of human art against the encroachment of AI. He deems it urgent to distinguish art created by people from what is produced by computational systems. He emphasizes an ontological difference, even prior to aesthetics, between art and images generated by statistical processes based on millions of existing works. For him, algorithms lack the spark of humanity.

An encyclical in May underscores human dignity in the automated age

In May, an encyclical letter provided a more detailed reflection from Pope Leo XIV on artificial intelligence, emphasizing human dignity in the context of increasing automation. The Holy Father, also Bishop of Rome, Primate of Italy, and Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, extends a caution already publicly expressed regarding generated art. The title Servus Servorum Dei appears in his cited communication.