Papst Leo XIV. 200-seitige Enzyklika sagt, dass KI Macht spiegelt, nicht Fortschritt

Pope Leo XIV's 200‑page encyclical Magnifica Humanitas argues that AI is a mirror, not a master, of centuries‑old power imbalances.

AI as a Lens on Inequality

The document opens with a stark observation: "When such power is concentrated in the hands of a few, it tends to become opaque and evade public oversight, increasing the risk of distorted forms of development that give rise to new dependencies, exclusions, manipulations and inequalities." The pope notes that AI tends to amplify the power of those who already possess economic resources, expertise and access to data. He cites Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter and the flow of hundreds of millions from tech elites into super PACs as modern examples of how data‑rich platforms can shape elections and policy.

The Arms Race and Oversight

Leo XIV calls for an end to the AI arms race that pushes for ever‑more powerful algorithms and larger datasets. "To disarm means discrediting the assumption that technical power automatically confers the right to govern," he writes. The encyclical arrives a few days after President Donald Trump delayed signing an executive order that would have required U.S. agencies to oversee new models before release, reportedly on the urging of VC investor David Sacks. The pope urges governments to adopt "clear criteria and effective oversight" grounded in participation from communities that will be affected by AI.

Legacy and Contemporary Stakes

The pope draws a line back to Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 Rerum Novarum, which addressed industrial concentration of power. He warns that the same dynamics predate AI, but the stakes are now higher. Notre Dame Law School professor Paolo Carozza, chair of Meta’s Oversight Board, tells TechCrunch that AI‑driven misinformation and deepfakes have "corroded our capacity to recognize what’s true and what’s not true," undermining democratic politics. He adds that the tech industry’s practice of "harvesting and manipulating" human data poses "fundamental challenges to cognitive freedom."

By demanding community‑driven oversight, the encyclical nudges governments and firms toward a future where AI’s gains are shared, not siphoned.

Source: The pope's AI encyclical isn't really about AI
Domain: techcrunch.com