- As America’s first pope, Leo is also well-positioned to counter President Trump, who has called concerns about AI safety a “hoax” and a “SICK conspiracy.”
- This is far from the first time Leo has appeared to break up with the president.
Driving the news: Closing out his trip to France, Leo told reporters on board a plane that he was not in “panic mode” over AI fears.
- But he went on to say: “I think the concerns raised by many experts, AI specialists, need to be taken seriously. I don’t think it’s fake news, as some have said, to try to generate some financial benefit or whatever.”
- Leo later added: “We have to keep working, we can’t sit back and pretend nothing will happen.”
Zoom: He praised Nvidia’s recent release of software to help secure AI agents, as rising incidents of agent misbehavior fuel AI security concerns.
- But Leo criticized the tech giant’s CEO, Jensen Huang, saying: “He’s the same one, though, who says there should be no limits or government regulations, et cetera, et cetera.”
- Huang also dismissed AI fears, suggesting at a recent conference that panic was a way for the cybersecurity industry to generate new business.
- A White House official told Axios that the hoax Trump was referring to is Democrats using AI concerns as a way to score points weeks before the midterm elections.
Catch up quickly: Leo’s first major encyclical, published in May, positions the Vatican as a moral voice in the growing debate over AI.
- Despite the technology’s usefulness, Leo warned in the paper that AI could erode human judgment, worsen inequality and destabilize democracy, among other risks, Axios’ Russell Contreras wrote at the time.
In summary: “We need to continue to invite political leaders, AI leaders, social organizations and associations to come together and look at what is already happening and what could happen in the future,” advised Leo.
What’s next: Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) are scheduled to meet with tech CEOs on Tuesday.
Go further: Pope: “The paradise of machines” threatens humanity
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with comment from a White House official.
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