Artificial intelligence advances– Supernatural Stampa Room has made public the theme chosen by the Pope for World Communications Day. In 2024, the theme of this day will be "Artificial Intelligence and Wisdom of the Heart: For a Fully Human Communication".
On this occasion, the Holy Father wants to focus on the technological revolution that means that "it is becoming more and more important for the world to have a better understanding of natural communicate through and with machines". This new reality brings challenges, among which the Pope highlights misinformation and loneliness.
Through the reflection invited by the Day of Social Communications, the Pope wants to seek a better orientation of Artificial Intelligence systems. Francis hopes "that a responsible awareness of the use and development of these new forms of communication will be formed in everyone". Only by learning to integrate artificial intelligence and algorithms in a responsible manner will "a fuller life of the human person" be achieved.
Artificial intelligence and anthropology
This is not the first time the Pope has spoken about artificial intelligence. Already in his encyclical "Laudato si'"expressed that "it is fair to rejoice in the face of these advances, and to be enthusiastic about the vast possibilities that these constant novelties" brought about by technology open up for us. However, he also warned that "humanity has never had so much power over itself and there is no guarantee that it will use it well, especially considering the way it is doing it.
Francis acknowledged in 2015 the multitude of advantages offered by technology, whether through Artificial Intelligence, medical advances or the modernization of industry. But he expressed concern about the impact of this on people's lives. "People no longer seem to believe in a happy future, they do not blindly trust in a better tomorrow based on current world conditions and technical capabilities. They are aware that the progress of science and technology is not the same as the progress of humanity and history, and they envision that there are other fundamental paths to a happy future. However, neither does he imagine himself renouncing the possibilities offered by technology".
The Holy Father, aware of the great weight of Artificial Intelligence and all that surrounds it, wants the Church to help integrate the great advances with a vision of man that cannot be reduced to the material plane of the "technocratic paradigm".
