Examining that puzzle reveals that the real subject of debate isn’t AI but anthropology. Every technological system presupposes some notion of what human beings are. If we are merely biological machines—producers, consumers or data points—then superior computational systems threaten to eclipse humanity. But if we possess an intrinsic dignity that transcends utility, efficiency and economic value, if we are distinct from machines, then technology can remain servant rather than master.
From Robert Sirico’s commentary in the WSJ on Pope Leo IV’s first encyclical letter “Magnifica Humanitas”