‘Artificial Intelligence Must Be Disarmed’ — Pope Leo Calls Out the Tech Giants Turning AI Into an ‘Instrument of Domination, Exclusion, and Death’ - Barchart.com

Artificial intelligence has become Wall Street’s favorite growth story. Tech companies are spending hundreds of billions of dollars building data centers, training AI models and racing to secure an edge in what many executives see as the next major technological revolution. Pope Leo XIV is urging the world to pause long enough to ask a different question: Who ultimately benefits from all that power?

In his first major encyclical, “Magnifica Humanitas,” Pope Leo delivered one of the strongest warnings yet about the risks of artificial intelligence, arguing that the technology must remain a tool that serves humanity rather than controls it.

“Artificial intelligence now demands to be disarmed. Freed from logics that turn it into an instrument of domination, exclusion, and death. Like nuclear energy, it must be at the service of all and of the common good,” the pope said in presenting the encyclical.

The roughly 42,000-word encyclical is the most significant statement of Leo’s papacy to date. The first American pope framed artificial intelligence as a transformational force comparable to the Industrial Revolution, echoing the concerns Pope Leo XIII addressed in “Rerum Novarum” more than a century ago.

The Vatican’s Warning Goes Beyond Technology

Leo was not calling for artificial intelligence to be abandoned.

Instead, he argued that AI should be developed within ethical boundaries and prevented from becoming a mechanism for concentrated power, surveillance, manipulation or warfare. The encyclical warns about autonomous weapons, misinformation, deepfakes, economic inequality, labor displacement, and the growing influence of a small number of organizations over data and algorithms.

One of the pope’s central concerns is that technical capability can be mistaken for moral authority. Simply because a system can make decisions, he argues, does not mean it should be entrusted with decisions that affect human dignity, freedom, or life itself.

The document also highlights the environmental costs of large-scale AI systems, including their growing demands for energy and water, while calling for greater transparency, accountability, and public participation in shaping the technology’s future.

Why Investors Should Pay Attention

The encyclical is unlikely to alter corporate AI spending overnight. Companies continue investing aggressively, and demand for AI-related products remains strong across cloud computing, software, semiconductor, and infrastructure markets.

Still, Leo’s message adds another layer to a debate that investors are already watching closely.

Governments in the United States, Europe, and Asia are weighing how aggressively artificial intelligence should be regulated. Questions surrounding data privacy, copyright, misinformation, competition, and national security have already moved from academic discussions into legislative chambers.

For investors, that creates both opportunities and risks.

Higher compliance requirements, expanded reporting obligations, and potential antitrust scrutiny could eventually increase costs for some of the world’s largest technology companies. At the same time, firms that emphasize transparency, governance and responsible deployment may find themselves better positioned if regulation becomes more stringent.

Wall Street’s AI Trade Meets A Growing Regulation Debate

The AI boom has powered enormous gains in companies tied to chips, cloud infrastructure, and advanced software. But as the technology becomes more deeply embedded in everyday life, scrutiny is growing alongside adoption.

Pope Leo’s encyclical is not a regulatory proposal, and it carries no legal authority over technology companies. Its significance lies elsewhere. The document represents one of the most prominent moral critiques of artificial intelligence yet delivered by a global leader with influence reaching well beyond politics or financial markets.

That matters because major technological shifts often face the same question sooner or later: Not whether they can transform society, but how they should.

For now, Wall Street remains focused on earnings growth, computing power, and market share. The Vatican is asking investors, policymakers, and technology leaders to consider a broader measure of success — whether the technology ultimately serves humanity as effectively as it serves shareholders.

On the date of publication, Jeannine Mancini did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.