Pope Leo XIV has been named to Time magazine’s “Time 100 AI” list for 2025, recognized as one of the world’s top “thinkers” shaping how humanity confronts artificial intelligence.

Time magazine said Leo has chosen a name “in part to meet a revolution: that of AI.” The list includes “leaders,” “innovators,” “shapers.” Leo has been listed in the “thinkers” category

“His name choice is a tribute to Leo XIII, who served during the Industrial Revolution at the close of the 19th century, and railed against the new machine-driven economic systems converting workers into commodities,” Time wrote, presenting Pope Leo as part of the list.

The list is an “annual look at the most influential people in artificial intelligence,” Time said. It was launched in 2023, “in the wake of OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT, the moment many became aware of AI’s potential to compete with and exceed the capabilities of humans.” The aim of the list is “to show how the direction AI travels will be determined not by machines but by people — innovators, advocates, artists, and everyone with a stake in the future of this technology.”

If Leo continues to marshal the world’s Catholics against AI’s alienating potential, Time said, “Silicon Valley faces a formidable — and unexpected — spiritual counterweight.”

“Upon assuming the papacy in May, Leo XIV told the world that as artificial intelligence ushered in a ‘new industrial revolution,’ the technology would require the ‘defense of human dignity, justice and labor.’ ”

Time underlined the influence and magnitude of the institution Pope Leo leads, saying, “The Catholic Church comprises 1.4 billion believers; were it a nation, the church would be the world’s third-largest.” The magazine described the pontiff as someone who, in terms of AI, is “already making good on his vow.”

The list is an “annual look at the most influential people in artificial intelligence,” Time said. It was launched in 2023, “in the wake of OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT, the moment many became aware of AI’s potential to compete with and exceed the capabilities of humans.” The aim of the list is “to show how the direction AI travels will be determined not by machines but by people — innovators, advocates, artists, and everyone with a stake in the future of this technology.”

If Leo continues to marshal the world’s Catholics against AI’s alienating potential, Time said, “Silicon Valley faces a formidable — and unexpected — spiritual counterweight.”

“Upon assuming the papacy in May, Leo XIV told the world that as artificial intelligence ushered in a ‘new industrial revolution,’ the technology would require the ‘defense of human dignity, justice and labor.’ ”

Time underlined the influence and magnitude of the institution Pope Leo leads, saying, “The Catholic Church comprises 1.4 billion believers; were it a nation, the church would be the world’s third-largest.” The magazine described the pontiff as someone who, in terms of AI, is “already making good on his vow.”