"Pope Urges Global Treaty to Govern AI after Personal Experience with AI-Generated Imagery"
Pope Francis has called for an international treaty to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) and ensure its ethical development and use. In his annual message for the World Day of Peace, the Pope emphasized the risks of AI lacking human values such as compassion, mercy, morality, and forgiveness. He expressed concerns about the potential disruption of everyday life, including democratic elections and art, and highlighted the need to guarantee fundamental human rights, promote peace, and guard against disinformation and discrimination. The Pope also called for human oversight of Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) and warned against the profound repercussions of automated systems that rank and categorize individuals. He argued that algorithms should not determine human rights or eliminate the possibility of personal growth and change. The Pope's message comes as the European Union secures provisional approval for comprehensive AI rules, and he stressed the importance of global regulation rather than relying solely on self-regulation by technology companies.