Anthropic lobbied the Vatican to soften Pope Leo’s AI encyclical — and Leo held the line.
Avoiding Babylon breaks down the reporting: secret San Francisco briefings, NDAs, five-star flattery, and a push to convince religious leaders that Claude has a soul and moral standing. Just before release, Anthropic tried to get language denying AI personhood pulled from the encyclical. Thank God Leo didn’t fall for it.
This isn’t tech hype. It’s about who gets to define the human person — Silicon Valley, or the Church.
In this clip:
- Anthropic’s push to reframe AI as conscious / suffering / morally significant
- The attempt to alter the AI encyclical so it wouldn’t deny AI personhood
- Lobbying the Pope’s advisors at the Vatican
- Why “Claude has a soul” is a theological claim, not a product pitch
- How luxury and access soften even serious religious leaders
- What this means for the fight over personhood going forward
