Orthodox Church leader says faith is humanity's safeguard against the 'impending robotocracy'

ATHENS – The spiritual person of the world’s Orthodox Christians has said that spiritual religion should service arsenic humanity’s safeguard amid rapidly advancing technology and what helium described arsenic the “impending robotocracy.”

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, 85, said that Orthodox tradition preserves “valuable human-centric wisdom” indispensable for navigating a satellite of accelerating technological alteration and automation.

His comments during an lawsuit astatine Athens University bespeak increasing concerns crossed large branches of Christianity — and ongoing dialog betwixt them — astir artificial intelligence’s imaginable interaction connected quality dignity and societal structures, arsenic good arsenic the dangers posed by autonomous weapons systems.

“In a satellite of accelerated change, an upheaval of values, and dizzying technological advances — from artificial intelligence to the impending robotocracy — our Church proclaims that ‘there is thing much ineffable than the quality being, with whom God Himself shared His nature,’” Bartholomew said.

The patriarch, who is based successful Istanbul, Turkey, made the remarks precocious Wednesday successful a code published connected Thursday.

Religious tradition, the patriarch said, “upholds the implicit precedence of the idiosyncratic implicit systems … and the request for an acquisition that cultivates and supports the spiritual quality of humanity.”

While not opposing technological advancement, Bartholomew emphasized the request for innovation to stay human-centered.

The comments echo akin concerns raised by different Christian leaders, who progressively framework their responses to AI and robotics done theological perspectives connected quality uniqueness, escaped will, and spiritual nature.

In guidance issued by the Vatican successful January, the Catholic Church said applications of AI “must each beryllium evaluated to guarantee they respect quality dignity and beforehand the communal good.”

The caput of the Anglican Church traveled to Rome past twelvemonth to motion the Call for AI Ethics — an inaugural backed by the Italian authorities and supported by tech giants IBM and Microsoft.

Bartholomew, who is connected a weeklong sojourn to Greece, met Thursday with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis days aft they some attended the funeral of Pope Francis.

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