Although he acknowledged the advantages, he cautioned against careless use.
In a speech at the annual “Minerva Dialogues,” which are arranged by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Education and Culture, Pope Francis made a formal appeal for the moral and responsible use of technology, including artificial intelligence (AI). The Pope acknowledged the advantages of AI when it was applied for the greater good, but he also cautioned against immoral or reckless application.
This request for the ethical and prudent use of AI comes a week after pictures of the Pope looking sharp in a white puffer coat deceived lots of people. Some news sites referred to it as “one of the first instances of widespread artificial intelligence-related misinformation” due to the photos produced using the AI application Midjourney. The images created controversy online.
In order to explore the social and cultural effects of digital technologies, with an emphasis on AI, the assembly brings together experts from a wide range of professions, including scientists, engineers, business executives, attorneys, theologians, and ethicists. The development of artificial intelligence and machine learning, according to Pope Francis, “has the potential to contribute in a positive way to the future of humanity.”
The Pope stressed the significance of those working on these technologies making a “constant and consistent commitment” to behave morally and responsibly. He applauded the general agreement that “development processes” must uphold principles like inclusivity, transparency, security, equity, privacy, and dependability. Additionally, he applauded international bodies’ efforts to regulate new technologies in order to ensure that they foster “genuine progress” and “an inherently higher quality of life” overall.
