Earlier this month, the creators of artificial intelligence suggested that the rapid advance of AI needs to slow down. Basically, they called for a pause button, without saying so. Experts weighed in, explaining that we are no longer dealing with simple AI tools, but with complex AI agents that can, if unchecked, cause major challenges. Most of us concluded, and rightly so, that AI is advancing at a speed that is difficult even for its creators to comprehend. To a certain extent, and that is to put it mildly, these tech giants seem to have realised that they created something that could soon outsmart us all. 

Leo

Back in May of this year, Pope Leo XIV wrote his first major encyclical on artificial intelligence, Magnifica Humanitas. It is a beautifully written encyclical.  At its heart is a simple proposition: technological progress is valuable only when it serves human beings rather than allowing human beings to become servants of technology.

"No one can be reduced to efficiency, cognitive abilities or mere data", Pope Leo wrote in Magnifica Humanitas. A stark reminder that human beings must not be reduced to their technological or economic usefulness.

This month's appeal, by the creators of AI themselves, seems to have set the alarm bells ringing about a growing concern about AI.  But Pope Leo saw it coming. 

Prudence

Personally, I have been closely following the rise of AI and am absolutely fascinated by the huge improvements it has made to science, research, and medicine. But I believe that it should be adequately regulated.

Pope Leo does not think that AI is evil or that technological development should be stopped. The problem, he argues, is what happens when technological power develops faster than our ability to regulate it. The AI creators seem to share the same concern. These are the same creators, founders of multi-billion-dollar companies, who are in a constant race to outpace each other with the latest AI agents. They take risks simply because somebody else might take them first. Now, they too are calling for a pause. This is why Pope Leo's appeal for prudence deserves attention.

Pause

A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 55% of surveyed Americans supported slowing AI development, while only 13% regarded a slowdown as a bad thing. The poll also found that 73% believed AI companies were not doing enough to prevent potential societal harm. In a nutshell, people are getting anxious about the rapid rise of AI, as world leaders often sit comfortably numb. Certainly, the AI creators' call for a slowdown should not be interpreted as a stop. We cannot, and should not, stop the genuine benefits of AI. But I do think that we must regulate before it seems we are not far off; the situation becomes challenging.

Humanity

Ultimately, we need to ask ourselves the question: "What kind of society do we want to create with these machines?" If efficiency and profits are more important than humans, their needs, and aspirations, then we are on course for a car crash. Unless we decide that AI is to remain a tool directed towards human purposes, as did the University of Malta this week when its Immersion Lab announced that it is training two humanoid robots to operate in environments considered too dangerous or inaccessible for humans, including caves, World War II shelters and post-incident sites. The robots, named Jane JN-5 and Nestor 10, will survey, scan, transmit and analyse data while reducing risks to human workers. The larger robot will carry equipment and enter difficult locations, while the smaller model will navigate tighter spaces. Well done to Professor Saviour Formosa for this remarkable initiative. 

Housekeeping

At a political event to mark the 62nd anniversary of Malta's Independence, PN leader Alex Borg declared with grand fanfare that he shall be leaving the PN headquarters to set up shop in a building, that the PN leases, in Valletta. 100 days after the PN's fourth consecutive electoral loss, and a month before next year's budget announcement, when people were expecting Borg to flesh out the PN's vision for the next few months and what lessons it learned from its latest electoral defeat, Borg thought that a change of office would do the trick. After losing four elections, Borg's solution is moving offices. The announcement fell flat, with many questioning who on earth is advising the PN leader - if any. It takes more than housekeeping, Alex!

Apparently

Earlier this week, I was singled out by the Opposition leader's lawyer for not having been a student at St Aloysius College, and for lacking a Jesuit education. I have utmost respect for colleagues of mine who studied at St Aloysius' whilst I remain a proud former student of the Archbishop's Seminary.  And as if that wasn't enough, the former Aloysian went so far as to compare me to the devil. Not a very gentlemanly approach, to say the least! I'm pretty sure that the Jesuits taught him otherwise.