Pope Leo XIV prepares to release landmark encyclical on AI this Monday
Tech firms, including Meta, Google and Amazon, met Vatican officials ahead of the pope's AI encyclical release
Representatives from Meta, Google and Amazon have been making quiet approaches to Vatican officials ahead of Pope Leo XIV's first encyclical on artificial intelligence, due to be released on Monday.
The lobbying effort has unfolded through embassy events, small-group meetings and Catholic intermediaries with ties to the technology world.
An April 29 gathering at the French embassy to the Holy See brought together tech representatives and Vatican communications chief Paolo Ruffini to discuss child protection in the age of AI — a discussion that quickly widened to cover AI's broader impact on human society.
Leo has signalled from the outset that AI will be central to his papacy. In his first address to the college of cardinals, he drew a deliberate parallel between his chosen papal name and Leo XIII, who defined Catholic social teaching during the Industrial Revolution, indicating he would dedicate his teaching "in response to another industrial revolution and the developments of artificial intelligence."
Anthropic co-founder Christopher Olah is expected to join Leo at Monday's encyclical launch.
The company contributed to Anthropic's published "constitution" in January alongside two Vatican advisors: Bishop Paul Tighe and Father Brendan McGuire, a Silicon Valley priest and former engineer.
US Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, offered a measured response. "When the Pope issues an encyclical on artificial intelligence, it's going to have some influence," he said.
"I'm sure it will contain a lot of insights, some of which I'll probably agree with, some of which I may not."
