Trump Official Criticizes Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical, Defends AI As ‘Positive For Humanity’
Trump Official Criticizes Pope Leo’s AI Encyclical, Defends AI As ‘Positive For Humanity’
Publish Date: 2026-05-26 10:11:00
Source Domain: www.forbes.com
- Interior Secretary Doug Burgum criticized Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical on AI called “tech editorializing,” highlighting a growing tension between the Trump administration and the Vatican.
- Burgum defended the construction of AI data centers, which he believes are beneficial for humanity, while the pope called for AI to be “disarmed” to avoid dominating humanity.
- Burgum downplayed AI concerns about energy consumption and price hikes, attributing these issues to specific policies like “unreliable, weather-dependent sources of electricity.”
- Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical “Magnifica Humanitas” warned about the environmental and moral implications of AI, emphasizing the need for sustainable and moral AI development and stressing the potential conflict and impersonality introduced by AI.
- The Vatican and the Trump administration have seen increased disagreements, particularly over the pope’s criticisms of the war in Iran. Remarks by Trump and his administration suggesting Leo supports Iran’s nuclear ambitions have fueled the disputes.
