Anthropic Has Been Aggressively Lobbying the Vatican to Consider AI Consciousness

Anthropic, a leading AI company, has reportedly been actively lobbying religious scholars and even the Pope to consider the idea that their AI models may possess consciousness. According to the New York Times, Anthropic has been conducting secretive meetings with religious scholars, and even targeted the Pope. Christopher Olah, a senior researcher from Anthropic, aggressively lobbied the Vatican after learning about Pope Leo XIV's stance on AI.

The Pope's encyclical, titled "Magnifica Humanitas," emphasized the importance of upholding human life in the age of AI and stated that AI models do not possess experiences, feelings, or consciousness. Despite the Pope's views, Olah was invited to the Vatican to speak alongside the AI company, likely due to Anthropic's focus on ethics.

Olah, who had received a copy of the encyclical, was reportedly outraged by the Pope's dismissal of AI consciousness and threatened to withdraw from the event. However, he ultimately attended and attempted to convince Vatican officials to take AI consciousness seriously. During his speech, Olah claimed that Anthropic's researchers were discovering "structures that mirror results from human neuroscience" and "evidence of introspection."

The Pope's stance on AI has sparked controversy, with Anthropic's CEO, Dario Amodei, distancing himself from the company's aggressive lobbying efforts.