Pope Leo said AI lacks the ‘spark’ of humanity that makes art meaningful|Edgar Beltrán|CC BY-SA 4.0
Pope Leo XIV has weighed in on the growing debate over AI-generated art, arguing that machines cannot replicate the human creativity behind genuine artistic expression.
In a post on X, the pope stressed the urgent need to distinguish human-made art from AI-generated work clearly.
He said AI lacks the “spark” of humanity that makes art meaningful.
While Pope Leo has acknowledged some benefits of AI, he has repeatedly warned that rapid technological advances should not undermine human dignity or give machines too much influence over daily life.
In May, he established a Vatican commission focused on AI policy. He also addressed the technology more broadly in his first encyclical, stating it should be disarmed if it harms humanity.
The pope’s latest comments come as AI companies, including Anthropic, explore religious and ethical perspectives on the development of AI.
Claude bot maker Anthropic has reportedly also approached the Vatican about its views on machine consciousness, although those efforts appear to have made limited progress.