Pope Leo XIV receives 'Sphere of Humanity' in push to establish AI ethics
During a solemn General Audience, Pope Leo XIV was presented with the Sphere of Humanity, a striking green Murano glass sculpture. The gift, offered by the nonprofit Saint Peter for Humanity, was meant to embody the pope’s recent call to protect human dignity in an age dominated by artificial intelligence.
The sphere follows an original design by Italian architect Gae Aulenti and incorporates four handwritten excerpts from the pope’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas. The text, etched into the glass, reflects on vulnerability, solidarity and the moral challenges posed by AI, turning a fragile object into a tangible manifesto.
Saint Peter for Humanity plans to convene some 70 Nobel laureates, artists, technologists and thinkers in New York City to draft the Codex Humanitatis. The draft will address the future of work, accountability, information integrity and the protection of children, aiming to translate the moral framework of the encyclical into concrete principles.
The presentation underscores how contemporary art can serve as a bridge between theology and technology. By embedding sacred scripture in a modern glass form, the Sphere of Humanity invites viewers to contemplate what must remain unmistakably human as machines grow ever more powerful.