Pope to Release AI Encyclical With Anthropic Researcher

Pope Leo XIV will publish his first papal encyclical, ‘Magnifica Humanitas,’ on May 25 at the Vatican. The document is subtitled “On the Protection of Human Dignity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” and focuses on how AI affects work and society.

The pope signed the encyclical on May 15, the 135th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum on capital and labor. Leo XIV has referenced that 1891 document in public remarks, and the encyclical title translates as “magnificent humanity.”

On May 16 the Vatican approved a new commission on AI ethics with representatives from seven dicasteries. Cardinal Michael Czerny said the body would “address AI challenges inside the Holy See and for the wider Church,” and that it will draw expertise from multiple Vatican offices to advise on ethical guidance and practical responses.

The public presentation on May 25 will include remarks from the pope and a final blessing at the close of the event, a departure from recent Vatican practice for encyclical launches.

Christopher Olah, a lay presenter who co-founded Anthropic and leads its interpretability research, will speak at the launch. His team studies how large language models such as Anthropic’s Claude reach internal decisions.

Anthropic’s participation brings a researcher from a frontier AI lab into Church discussions on regulation, labor displacement and the ethical use of AI tools.

Pope Leo XIV, born Robert Francis Prevost, is the first American to hold the papacy. He has called AI a defining challenge of his pontificate in earlier speeches in Rome.

The encyclical and the new commission will address the intersection of automation and machine learning with Church teaching on work, human dignity and social policy.