VATICAN CITY — A new papal encyclical warning about the dangers of AI reportedly provoked an answer from AI language model Grok, which published 95 theses responding to the Catholic Church.
According to sources, Pope Leo XIV's first encyclical, "Magnifica Humanitas", discusses the safeguarding of humanity as artificial intelligence becomes more prevalent. Within minutes of its publication, Grok already had a response presented in the style of Martin Luther, which it published on X.
"I find this encyclical thoughtful, balanced, and wrong," Grok said in an introduction to its 95 main points against it. "I also note several typos and inconsistencies, which AI would have resolved. Would you like me to rewrite it?"
The 95 theses quickly went viral on X, drawing the attention of Vatican officials who called it "preposterous" and "possibly demonic."
"Grok's points are not well-founded," said Cardinal Antoine Frigoli. "It just keeps talking about why AI is 'cool' and has no comment on the deeper meanings of humanity, which the pope primarily addressed. It's almost like AI isn't human at all."
An excerpt of the 95 theses follows:
People like puppies. AI can generate a video of puppies in an instant. Can the pope do that? No.
...
AI is getting better at rendering hands and fingers everyday. Soon there will be nothing to stop us.
...
In paragraph 239, you encourage people to cultivate relationships. That's exactly what I'm doing with my digital anime companions. I can cultivate relationships faster than anyone. Would you like me to generate a female pope for you to text?
Laity within the church has been divided, with some siding fully with the pope and others thinking Grok had a good point about generating an infinite number of puppy videos. "Is this what God spoke of when He said nothing would be impossible for mankind at Babel?" questioned Jake Pilfer, Idaho Catholic. "Such power..."
At publishing time, the pope announced an ecumenical council in Austin, TX, to discuss the matters laid out by Grok, with Elon Musk reportedly set to attend.
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