The Pope weighs in on AI in healthcare with a call to retain humanity

Religion and science have had their fair share of disagreements over the last few millennia, but there may be one thing that representatives from both sides of the divide agree upon: artificial intelligence is bringing drastic changes to the human experience, and our generation has a responsibility to make sure those changes are ethical, equitable, and person-centered. 

Pope Leo XIV is the latest religious figure to address the challenge of infusing artificial intelligence into the modern experience, and has made specific remarks about AI’s role in the healthcare industry.  

Balancing “transformative and beneficial” potential with the human touch  

In a public statement ahead of The Pontifical Academy for Life’s international congress entitled “AI and Medicine: The Challenge of Human Dignity,” the Pope has urged developers, care providers, and other stakeholders in the healthcare community to preserve the human element of healthcare while considering how to best employ AI tools to enhance efficiencies and improve outcomes. 

“We currently interact with machines as if they were interlocutors, and thus become almost an extension of them,” he said. “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. 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 fragility of the human condition is often manifest within the field of medicine, but we must never forget the ‘ontological dignity that belongs to the person as such simply because he or she exists and is willed, created, and loved by God’,” he continues, referencing established Catholic doctrine.  

The Pontiff continued by urging healthcare professionals to use AI responsibly in the field of medicine, and avoid thinking of medical issues simply as problems to be solved.  Technical tools should not take away from the carer-patient relationship, but should instead enhance the ability of care providers to show compassion, empathy, and humanity. 

Following in his predecessor’s footprints by addressing AI  

Pope Leo XIV isn’t the first Catholic leader to share an opinion on artificial intelligence. Shortly before his death in early 2025, Pope Francis also tackled the issue with an address to the World Economic Forum. 

In his message, Pope Francis noted that “when used correctly, AI assists the human person in fulfilling his or her vocation, in freedom and responsibility.”  

However, he continued, “Within this paradigm, human dignity and fraternity are frequently subordinated in the pursuit of efficiency, as though reality, goodness, and truth inherently emanate from technological and economic power. Yet human dignity must never be violated for the sake of efficiency. Technological developments that do not improve life for everyone, but instead create or worsen inequalities and conflicts, cannot be called true progress. For this reason, AI should be placed at the service of a healthier, more human, more social, and more integral development.” 

“To navigate the complexities of AI, governments and businesses must exercise due diligence and vigilance. They must critically evaluate the individual applications of AI in particular contexts in order to determine whether its use promotes human dignity, the vocation of the human person, and the common good.” 

Alignment with ethical AI frameworks from healthcare thought leaders

Ethical AI development has been a foundational principle on the secular side of the world, as well. Particularly in healthcare, there has been a strong focus on ensuring that AI tools are safe and effective, with an emphasis on equity, accessibility, and reducing disparities. 

In March, for example, a group of more than 100 AI experts from 50 different countries unveiled the FUTURE-AI framework, inspired by the FAIR principles for data management (findability, accessibility, interoperability, and reusability). The framework establishes six guiding principles for AI in healthcare: fairness, universality, traceability, usability, robustness, and explainability. 

These principles have been echoed multiple times in different ways across a multitude of AI implementation manifestos with a healthcare twist, published by everyone from UNESCO and WHO to the American Medical Association (AMA), CHIME, and Coalition for Health AI (CHAI). 

The common threads include promoting strong governance and compliance, being aware of the potential for unintentional bias, and prioritizing patient rights and the human experience of healthcare. 

This rare congruence between religious and scientific outlooks on AI development bodes well for those on the receiving end of AI-enabled services, including patients and family caregivers who still often have a tough time navigating through an increasingly tech-forward care journey. By keeping ethical, responsible, person-centered AI deployment at the forefront of the process, healthcare institutions should be better prepared to reduce barriers to care while maintaining the human touch. 

Jennifer Bresnick is a journalist and freelance content creator with a decade of experience in the health IT industry.  Her work has focused on leveraging innovative technology tools to create value, improve health equity, and achieve the promises of the learning health system.  She can be reached at [email protected].