As artificial intelligence continues to reshape society, the Vatican is bringing together some of the world’s foremost thinkers to examine how emerging technologies can be guided by moral responsibility rather than unchecked innovation.
From July 14–16, more than 200 academics, innovators, and Nobel laureates are gathering at Borgo Laudato Si’ in the Pontifical Gardens at Castel Gandolfo for the Global Nobel Laureates Assembly on Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear War, according to EWTN News. The summit comes as Pope Leo XIV spends several weeks at the papal residence and reflects the concerns raised in his recent encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas.
According to EWTN News, the Holy Father’s encyclical is “dedicated to the protection of the human person in the age of artificial intelligence,” providing the inspiration for the international gathering.
The conference extends beyond artificial intelligence alone. Participants are also discussing nuclear disarmament, autonomous weapons, and the ethical challenges created by rapidly advancing digital technologies. Organizers plan to conclude the summit by drafting a declaration calling for “an unarmed and disarming peace in the age of artificial intelligence, nuclear and autonomous weapons, new digital protocols, and emerging models of digital development,” according to EWTN News.
The gathering has drawn support from leading universities around the world, including Catholic institutions such as the University of Notre Dame and The Catholic University of America.
Alessio Pecorario, founder of the Domus Communis Foundation and one of the summit’s organizers, told EWTN News that the conference reflects Pope Leo XIV’s appeal for a broader understanding of peace and disarmament.
“Disarmament in the Church’s social doctrine is not only the disarmament of weapons, obviously, but also the disarmament of spirits; it is the disarmament of the economy,” Pecorario said, according to EWTN News.
He also emphasized that the meeting seeks to encourage responsible leadership rather than burdensome regulation.
“The conference is about the governance of artificial intelligence,” Pecorario told EWTN News. “This governance should be understood not as bureaucracy but as a collective of business, religious, and academic leaders, to help ensure that human beings remain in positive control of the challenges of our time.”
As the Church continues to engage the ethical questions surrounding technological progress, the Vatican’s summit highlights the conviction that innovation must always serve the dignity of the human person. By bringing together experts from science, academia, business, and the Church, the assembly aims to encourage international cooperation rooted in peace, responsibility, and the common good.
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