TLDR
- Pope Leo said fears about AI posing serious risks to humanity are not “fake news.”
- He directly criticized Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang for opposing new AI regulation.
- The comments came aboard the papal flight from France back to Rome on Monday.
- Trump told the UN last week that AI danger fears were a “hoax.”
- Tech CEOs including Huang, Zuckerberg, Amodei and Brockman are set to meet Trump at the White House.
Pope Leo spoke to reporters on his flight home from a four day trip to France on Monday. He addressed growing concerns over artificial intelligence and its risks to society.
The pope said worries raised by AI experts should not be dismissed. “I don’t think that that is fake news, as some have said,” he told journalists.
His comment appeared to respond to President Donald Trump. Trump told the UN General Assembly last week that fears about AI destroying humanity were a “hoax.”
On his return flight from France, Pope Leo XIV is asked if he is "worried are you that AI could pose catastrophic risks to humanity or even wipe it out entirely", to which he responds:
"If someone were to ask me, am I in panic mode? No, I'm not. I sleep at night. I do think that… pic.twitter.com/grHVxN5RRd
— Catholic Sat (@CatholicSat) September 28, 2026
Pope Questions Nvidia’s Position on Regulation
Pope Leo pointed to recent news about Nvidia. The company had announced a system called “Sentry” designed to monitor AI agents running on its chips.
The pope questioned why Nvidia would build safety tools into its products while its CEO argues against government rules.
“It’s interesting to note that, just today, I read that the head of Nvidia claims that he has found some way of inserting into AI certain guardrails,” Pope Leo said.
He added that the same executive has said there should be no limits placed on AI and no government regulation.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has said companies should be responsible for their own AI safety measures. He has argued new laws are not needed.
“The market forces are already there. We don’t need any new laws. We don’t need new regulations,” Huang said earlier this month.
Huang also told CBS News this month that he agreed with Trump’s view that AI safety concerns were overblown.
Wider AI Safety Debate Continues
Pope Leo has spoken about AI risks throughout his 16 month papacy. He is the first pope from the United States.
He said the goal should be to prevent AI from reaching a point where it could destroy humanity. He called for continued dialogue, study and investigation into the technology.
“We can’t just sit back and pretend nothing’s going to happen,” the pope said.
Other AI industry leaders have also called for more safeguards. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei have both spoken about the need for international cooperation on AI rules.
Trump is set to meet with tech CEOs on Tuesday at the White House to discuss AI. Huang, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei and OpenAI’s Greg Brockman are expected to attend.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said the meeting will focus on balancing innovation with oversight. He warned that too much regulation could cause the US to fall behind China in the AI race.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai and SpaceX and AI executive Elon Musk may also attend the White House meeting.
The pope’s comments add another voice to the ongoing global debate over how much government oversight AI development should have.
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