Cardinal Parolin addresses UN meetings on AI, Declaration on Right to Development

September 24, 2026

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, addressed two UN meetings yesterday.

At a high-level meeting on AI and human development, Cardinal Parolin emphasized the centrality of the human person and the importance of limits:

While technology’s potential to spare human beings from repetitive or burdensome tasks should be acknowledged, it cannot come at the expense of the irreplaceable role of the human person. This is particularly pertinent at a time when technologies are advancing in unpredictable ways, making it difficult to fully assess their long-term impact on human dignity and the common good. Thus, for the discernment to be fruitful, it is necessary to embrace the concept of limits, which may initially seem contrary to the very idea of progress.

Cardinal Parolin warned that “in a context where digital networks and developments in AI are increasingly bound to the globalized economy, amplifying the effects of decisions made, there is a risk that those holding greater technical and economic resources may impose their own particular vision of reality.”

“It is therefore incumbent upon the international community to govern and orient this age of change so that the promotion of the God-given human dignity of every person, rather than technical or economic considerations, remains at the core of every decision that shapes technological progress in the years to come,” he concluded.

At a high-level meeting on the 40th anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development, Cardinal Parolin recalled that the UN document

identifies the individual person as the focus and beneficiary of the right to development, with the State as the primary duty bearer. It also explicitly connects this right to the obligation of international cooperation to support States in their duties as the primary promoters and protectors of the individual’s right to development.

“The right to development is rooted in the God-given dignity of each person, from conception to natural death, regardless of age, nationality, race, religion, ethnicity, sex or disability,” Cardinal Parolin continued. Yet “poverty, food insecurity, conflict, climate change, and debt burdens are among the obstacles that hinder the exercise of the right to development.”

“This right is realized through renewed and concrete action, and international cooperation guided by solidarity and the recognition of the shared responsibility,” he added. “States, particularly those facing the greatest structural challenges, should have access to the financial, technological and human resources necessary to advance the development of their peoples. Such cooperation should empower women and men to become the true protagonists of their own development.”

 

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Further information:

• His Eminence Cardinal Parolin Delivers Statement at the High-Level Meeting on Artificial Intelligence and Human Development (Holy See Mission, 9/23/26)
• His Eminence Cardinal Parolin Delivers Statement at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on the 40th Anniversary of the Declaration on the Right to Development (Holy See Mission, 9/23/26)