South China Morning Post

Pope urges ban on lethal AI weapons in address to leaders

No machine should ever choose to take the life of a human, pontiff says in historic summit speech

Pope Francis has called for a ban on “lethal autonomous weapons”, as he became the first pontiff to address the G7 with a speech on the perils of artificial intelligen­ce.

“In light of the tragedy that is armed conflict, it is urgent to reconsider the developmen­t and use of devices like the so-called ‘lethal autonomous weapons’ and ultimately ban their use,” the 87-year-old said.

“This starts from an effective and concrete commitment to introduce ever greater and proper human control. No machine should ever choose to take the life of a human being,” he told the meeting in Puglia, southern Italy.

Francis, invited by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to address the Group of Seven summit, has repeatedly denounced the arms industry and those he says profit from wars and death.

AI is already being used on the battlefiel­d and its move into modern warfare is raising concerns about the risks of escalation and the role of humans in decision making.

AI has shown itself to be faster but not necessaril­y safer or more ethical, and the developmen­t of weapons systems that could kill without human interventi­on poses ethical and legal challenges.

“Artificial intelligen­ce [is] at the same time an exciting and fearsome tool,” Francis told leaders gathered at the luxury Borgo Egnazia resort.

“We would condemn humanity to a future without hope if we took away people’s ability to make decisions about themselves and their lives, by dooming them to depend on the choices of machines,” he warned.

The G7, which brings together Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, said on Friday that AI “can play a crucial role in promoting progress and developmen­t in our societies”.

“We recognise the impact of AI on the military domain and the need for a framework for responsibl­e developmen­t and use,” the leaders said in a draft statement.

At a strategic level, AI will produce models of battlefiel­ds and propose how to respond to attacks, maybe even including the use of nuclear weapons.

“We need to ensure and safeguard a space for proper human control over the choices made by artificial intelligen­ce programs: human dignity itself depends on it,” Francis said.

The Argentine pontiff was speaking after a series of meetings with world leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Francis had spent the morning clowning around with comedians at the Vatican, including Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock and Jimmy Fallon.

He met more than 100 “artists from the world of humour” as part of his efforts to engage with contempora­ry culture.

We need to ensure … human control over the choices made by artificial intelligen­ce POPE FRANCIS