The Vatican has raised fresh concerns over the use of artificial intelligence in warfare, with Pope Leo XIV warning against delegating military decisions to machines.
In his first World Peace Day message published on Thursday, the Pope said rapid technological advances and the military application of AI have intensified the tragedy of armed conflict.
“There is a growing tendency among political and military leaders to evade responsibility as decisions about life and death are increasingly delegated to machines.
“This represents an unprecedented and destructive betrayal of the legal and philosophical principles of humanism that underpin and safeguard every civilisation”, he said.
The Catholic Church’s first pope from the United States, elected in May, has repeatedly called for the ethical and responsible use of artificial intelligence, stressing that technology must remain under human control and accountability.
Several countries are already deploying AI for surveillance, cyber defence and weapons systems, including autonomous drones and missile defence platforms powered by predictive algorithms, developments that have sparked serious ethical concerns.
In the same message, issued ahead of World Peace Day observed by the Church on January 1, Pope Leo XIV also condemned the use of religion for political purposes.
“It has become increasingly common to misuse the language of faith in political conflicts, to sanctify nationalism and to justify violence and armed struggle in the name of religion”, he said.
The 70-year-old pontiff further criticised the concept of military might, particularly nuclear deterrence, describing it as rooted in fear rather than justice and built “not on law, trust and cooperation, but on domination by force”.
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