I extend my prayerful good wishes to all who are participating in the International Congress entitled “AI and Medicine: The Challenge of Human Dignity.”  In particular, I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation for the topic you have chosen to consider.  The digital revolution is playing a central role in shaping what Pope Francis referred to as an “epochal change.”  We are currently witnessing a time of new technological advancement that is comparable to the Industrial Revolution in some respects, but is more pervasive.  It heavily influences the way we think, altering our understanding of situations and how we perceive ourselves and others.  We currently interact with machines as if they were interlocutors, and thus become almost an extension of them.  In this sense, we not only run the risk of losing sight of the faces of the people around us, but of forgetting how to recognize and cherish all that is truly human.

There is no doubt that technological development has brought, and continues to bring, significant benefits to humanity, particularly in the fields of medicine and health.  In order to ensure true progress, it is imperative that human dignity and the common good remain resolute priorities for all, both individuals and public entities.  It is easy to recognize the destructive potential of technology and even medical research when they are placed at the service of antihuman ideologies.  In this sense, historical events stand as a warning: the instruments at our disposal today are even more powerful and can produce a still more devastating effect on the lives of individuals and peoples.  However, if harnessed and placed at the true service of the human person, these effects can also be transformative and beneficial.

From this point of view, I consider your dedication to exploring the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in medicine to be of great significance.  The fragility of the human condition is often manifest within the field of medicine, but we must never forget the “ontological dignity that belongs to the person as such simply because he or she exists and is willed, created, and loved by God” (Declaration Dignitas Infinita, 7).  For this very reason, “healthcare professionals have the vocation and responsibility to be guardians and servants of human life,” especially in its most vulnerable stages (Note Antiqua et Nova, 71).  The same can also be said of those who are responsible for the use of AI in this field.  Indeed, the greater the fragility of human life, the greater the nobility required of those entrusted with its care.

The objective of providing care for individuals emphasizes the irreplaceable nature of human relationships in this context.  Medical professionalism, in fact, requires not only the necessary specific expertise, but also the ability to communicate and be close to others.  It can never be reduced merely to solving a problem.  Similarly, technological devices must never detract from the personal relationship between patients and healthcare providers.  Indeed, if AI is to serve human dignity and the effective provision of healthcare, we must ensure that it truly enhances both interpersonal relationships and the care provided.

Given the vast economic interests often at stake in the fields of medicine and technology, and the subsequent fight for control, it is essential to promote a broad collaboration among all those working in health care and politics that extends well beyond national borders.  For this reason, I am pleased to know that speakers from different continents and backgrounds are present at your Conference.

With these sentiments, please know, dear friends, of my prayers that this Conference will bear abundant fruit for you, your colleagues and the many people who will benefit from your competent and generous commitment.  I thank you all and invoke upon you and your families the Blessing of Almighty God.

From the Vatican, 7 November 2025

LEO PP. XIV