Catholic moral theologians urge US court to set limits on military AI use

A group of Catholic moral theologians has asked a federal appeals court to establish defined normative boundaries for the use of artificial intelligence in warfare. In an amicus brief submitted to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, the scholars support Anthropic’s request for an en banc hearing in a legal dispute between the company and the U.S. Department of War.

The theologians, including University of Dayton professor Jana Bennett, Father Michael Baggot from the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum, and Loyola University Chicago philosophy professor Joe Vukov, stated they support the company's ethical stance against using AI for lethal autonomous warfare and mass domestic surveillance. The scholars cited Catholic teachings on privacy to argue against mass surveillance.

The legal conflict began after the Department of War ended its contract with the California-based developer Anthropic and labeled the company a national security risk. This followed the company's refusal to allow its AI models to be used for mass surveillance of U.S. citizens or lethal autonomous weapons. A September ruling by the D.C. appeals court upheld the government's decision.