Pope Leo XIV will unveil his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity), on May 25, the Vatican announced, positioning the document as a statement about human dignity amid rapid advances in artificial intelligence.
The Vatican said the encyclical centers on “the care of human dignity in the era of AI,” with the launch framed as a formal presentation rather than a routine briefing. It said the May 25 event will take place in the main Vatican auditorium, where invited speakers are expected to address the document and its themes.
Among those scheduled to speak is Christopher Olah, a co-founder of the artificial intelligence company Anthropic. The Vatican’s inclusion of Olah at the encyclical launch is notable because Anthropic has faced U.S. government actions involving its AI technology, according to the report.
In February, the Trump administration ordered all U.S. agencies to stop using Anthropic’s AI technology and imposed other major penalties related to how the company’s systems could be used by the U.S. military, the Associated Press reported. Anthropic is suing the administration, alleging retaliation tied to limits placed on deployment of its technology.
The Vatican said the pope’s broader attention to AI will also be reflected in the event. It reported that Leo has made AI a priority of his young pontificate and has expressed concern about AI in warfare, calling for monitoring of how the technology is used.
The Vatican said presentations like the one planned for May 25 are usually held in the Vatican press room with a smaller set of officials and invited guests who respond to reporters. This time, the Vatican said it is bringing a larger roster for a formal launch, including senior church officials and lay speakers.
Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, described by the Vatican as the doctrine chief, and Cardinal Michael Czerny, described as the development chief, will serve as the main presenters. The Vatican said Olah will be among the lay speakers, alongside theologians Anna Rowlands and Leocadie Lushombo.
The Vatican said the event will conclude with remarks from Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the secretary of state, and that Pope Leo will deliver a speech and provide a final blessing. It also said Leo signed the document on May 15—135 years after his namesake, Pope Leo XIII, signed the encyclical “Rerum Novarum,” which addressed workers’ rights and the obligations of states and employers as the Industrial Revolution proceeded.
The Vatican said the pope has already linked Rerum Novarum to what he sees as comparable existential questions raised by AI, and it described the encyclical’s placement within the church’s broader social teaching. That teaching, the report said, also covers issues including labor, justice and peace.
Anthropic’s background in AI safety and competition in the technology sector also forms part of the context for the Vatican’s choice of speaker. The report said Anthropic’s co-founder Dario Amodei previously worked at OpenAI before he and a group left in 2021, and that the new company focused on the safety of artificial general intelligence.
In a recent post on its website, Anthropic warned about the risk of advanced systems being used by authoritarian regimes for repression and surveillance, according to the report. It said the U.S. and democratic allies must continue to lead on AI development and impose rules and norms on how the technology spreads.