At the A.I. Epicenter, Technologists Dismiss Pope Leo’s Warnings About the New Technology

Pope Leo XIV presented a 42,300-word open letter to Catholics, calling for safeguarding humanity from the rise of AI, with Christopher Olah from Anthropic as a symbol of a dialogue between the spiritual and technological worlds.
Jeremy Nixon, a prominent figure in Silicon Valley’s AI scene, criticized the pope’s efforts, arguing that the perspectives from the spiritual and technological worlds are distinct rather than in dialogue.
Nixon expressed skepticism that the pope’s letter would affect Silicon Valley, noting that the tech community likely paid attention only because of Olah’s presence.
Silicon Valley’s reaction to the encyclical was muted, with David Sacks arguing against excessive regulation and Jack Dorsey supporting open access to AI’s underlying elements.
Nixon believes that AI could soon achieve what religions claim deities achieve, and that many in the tech community aim to build a more powerful species or even a new ‘God’.
In his encyclical, Pope Leo XIV emphasized the essential role of work in human fulfillment and warned against AI’s potential pitfalls using the biblical story of the Tower of Babel.
Despite Olah’s suggestion that AI may possess human-like states, Nixon insists AI is controlled by humans and still lacks true autonomy.
Some in Silicon Valley believe AI’s advancements could have a transformative effect, even suggesting that the Vatican might use AI to build a ‘New Jerusalem’.

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