Pope Leo XIV: AI in healthcare must uphold human dignity, enhance relationships, and serve patients without replacing personal care
Newsroom (10/11/2025, Gaudium Press) Pope Leo XIV called on Monday for the responsible integration of artificial intelligence in medicine, emphasizing that technological advancements must enhance rather than erode interpersonal relationships and the inherent dignity of patients.
In a message marking the opening of the international congress “AI and Medicine: The Challenge of Human Dignity,” organized by the Pontifical Academy for Life and running November 10-12, the pontiff extended “prayerful good wishes” to participants. He highlighted AI’s profound impact on human thought and self-perception, warning that treating machines as conversational partners risks diminishing recognition of authentic humanity.
“We currently interact with machines as if they were interlocutors, and thus become almost an extension of them,” Pope Leo XIV wrote. “In this sense, we not only run the risk of losing sight of the faces of the people around us, but of forgetting how to recognize and cherish all that is truly human.”
Acknowledging AI’s contributions to medical progress, the pope stressed that genuine advancement demands prioritizing human dignity and the common good. Technologies, he noted, can be “transformative and beneficial” when serving the person, but devastating if misused.
He urged healthcare professionals to wield AI as “guardians and servants of human life,” recalling the “ontological dignity” of every individual as willed, created, and loved by God. This fragility, often evident in medicine, underscores the need for expertise paired with compassionate communication.
Central to his address was the “irreplaceable nature” of human relationships in care. “Healthcare cannot be reduced to solving a problem,” he asserted, insisting that devices must never supplant the patient-carer bond. “If AI is to serve human dignity and the effective provision of healthcare, we must ensure that it truly enhances both interpersonal relationships and the care provided.”
The pope also addressed economic stakes in medicine and technology, advocating transnational collaboration between professionals and policymakers to navigate these interests ethically.
The congress convenes experts to deliberate AI’s ethical implications in healthcare, aligning with the Vatican’s ongoing dialogue on technology’s role in society.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Vatican News
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