Pope Leo, who was chosen as the new leader of the Catholic Church on Thursday, also highlighted the role journalists can play in bringing attention to injustice and poverty in the world. He urged the media to focus on reporting the truth instead of taking part in partisan divisions, and not to give space to "fanaticism and hatred." Speaking in the Vatican's Paul VI audience hall, he said "the way we communicate is of fundamental importance: we must say'no' to the war of words and images, we must reject the paradigm of war." "We do not need loud, forceful communication," he said, "but rather communication that is capable of listening and of gathering the voices of the weak who have no voice." The new pope also raised concerns about artificial intelligence, telling the assembled media they should use AI with "responsibility and discernment." Reporters should ensure that AI can be used for the "benefit of all of humanity," he said.

Pope Francis called for a ban on "lethal autonomous weapons" in an address to the G7 leaders' summit in Italy on the perils of artificial intelligence (AI). On Friday, the pontiff was the first head of the Roman Catholic Church to ever attend a Group of Seven meeting. "In light of the tragedy that is armed conflict, it is urgent to reconsider the development and use of devices like the so-called'lethal autonomous weapons' and ultimately ban their use," the pope said. "This starts from an effective and concrete commitment to introduce ever greater and proper human control. No machine should ever choose to take the life of a human being."

He embraced its promise too, saying AI offered "exciting opportunities" and describing it as the "brilliant product" of humanity's creative potential. But he focused mostly on risks. At a time when smart drones are already being deployed on the battlefields of Ukraine, Francis called the rise of "Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems, including the weaponization of artificial intelligence" a cause for "grave ethical concern." A machine, he said, should not be making life and death decisions.