Months After Viral 'Drip' Pic, Pope Francis Sounds Alarm On AI's 'Disruptive Possibilities And Ambivalent Effects'

Months after a viral AI-rendered image featuring Pope Francis captured the internet’s attention, the Pontiff has delivered a sobering message, raising red flags about the potential risks and perils associated with artificial intelligence.

What Happened: In a message for the upcoming World Day of Peace of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has highlighted the need for global contemplation regarding the profound implications of AI. 

Despite his unfamiliarity with the technology, Pope Francis warned against the “disruptive possibilities and ambivalent effects” that AI introduces into our lives, reported Reuters. 

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The Pope’s message underscored the necessity for vigilance against the development of AI technologies that could perpetuate violence and discrimination, particularly at the expense of marginalized communities.

“The urgent need to orient the concept and use of artificial intelligence in a responsible way, so that it may be at the service of humanity and the protection of our common home, requires that ethical reflection be extended to the sphere of education and law,” stated the message released by the Vatican. 

Earlier this year, an uncannily realistic image of Pope Francis wearing an oversized white puffer jacket spread like wildfire on Twitter, now rebranded as “X,” and Reddit. The image was generated by an AI tool known as Midjourney.

Why It’s Important: Previously, tech moguls like Geoffrey Hinton, Elon Musk, and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak have expressed their concerns and advocated for a slowdown in the advancement of AI systems “more powerful” than OpenAI’s GPT-4. 

Business magnate and investor Warren Buffett has also expressed doubts about OpenAI’s ChatGPT and compared it with the invention of the Atom Bomb. 

Last month, tech heavyweights, including Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Meta Platforms, OpenAI, Anthropic, and Inflection, pledged to adhere to a set of voluntary guidelines aimed at mitigating AI-related risks. 

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