Pope Says "Claims That AI Threatens Humanity Are Not Fake News," Directly Rebuking Trump

[Financial News] As United States President Donald Trump repeatedly dismisses claims that AI threatens humanity as "a scam" and voices opposition to calls to slow the pace of AI development, Pope Leo XIV emphasized, "Concerns about AI safety are not fake news, and we need to seriously discuss how to address them."
According to The Associated Press (AP) on the 28th local time, the pope made the remarks when asked aboard the papal plane returning from a trip to France what the United States and China, in particular, should do to prevent the catastrophic threat AI could pose to humanity.
The pope said, "This is an issue we need to sit down and discuss seriously," adding, "We cannot step back and pretend not to know, as if nothing is going to happen." He stressed, "I do not think this issue is fake news aimed at obtaining some kind of benefit, whether financial or in another form, as some people claim."
According to the British daily Financial Times (FT), the pope also criticized Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, who has expressed opposition to slowing AI development or regulating it.
The pope told reporters, "I read that the head of NVIDIA claimed he had found a way to put guardrails on AI." He was referring to NVIDIA's announcement that day of a platform offering control features throughout the process, from the testing phase of AI agents to their actual deployment.
The pope pointed out, "But he is someone who has said there should be no restrictions and no government regulation," adding, "This is precisely the kind of issue I think we need to sit down and discuss."
The pope said, "Political leaders, AI leaders, social organizations and associations should come together to keep reviewing what has already happened and what may happen in the future." He added, "Simply closing our eyes and saying that such things will not happen is not a responsible attitude."
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