Kudos to Pope Leo. I am disturbed by how some of my fellow AI researchers keep trying to elevate the moral standing of checkpoints and harnesses. I hope the rest of us on Team Meatbag reject this movement and stay focused on solving real problems and helping actual humans.
NEW: According to a bombshell report in the New York Times, Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah threatened to walk out of Pope Leo XIV’s AI encyclical launch in May because the pope rejected the idea that machines can be conscious. Olah’s team then privately lobbied the pope’s advisers “to take the possibility of model consciousness seriously.” Pope Leo XIV held firm. For months, Anthropic has wined and dined theologians and religious scholars under nondisclosure agreements, hoping they would bless the idea that Claude has moral standing. thelettersfromleo.com/p/nyt-…

Oct 2, 2026 · 8:41 PM UTC

84
294
3,278
244,231
Sort replies: Relevant Recent Liked
Replying to @jon_barron
If you're really on Team Meatbag, I think you should stop developing this technology.
3
59
6,590
unfortunately I mostly develop a different kind of less-useful technology
1
44
4,819
Replying to @jon_barron
This explains a lot about Gemini
2
1
122
13,362
I like this take!
1
91
9,691
Replying to @jon_barron
They may be getting ahead of themselves but digital consciousness is coming. The weird thing is that they are seeking validation from the clergy as though that is relevant.
6
12
7,963
I still don't know what consciousness is but I just don't care. Humans are axiomatically special and trying to justify this with any framing, religious or otherwise, is a mistake.
9
14
211
6,441
Replying to @jon_barron
Do you think that models will ever matter, morally? Is it just models today that aren't morally relevant?
2
7
4,899
It seems like humans get to decide whether or not things matter morally, but I sure hope we reach the consensus soon that models do not matter morally at all, today and forever.
7
2
148
4,260
Replying to @jon_barron
Yes
1
98
3,255
Replying to @jon_barron
Good to hear you believe this. You should: (1) explicitly denounce all the weird EA stuff about commensurability of human flourishing vis a vis insects/shrimp/digital minds, and about 'AI welfare', which is a great way to end up at permanent human disempowerment (2) stop working on AI development, since this sort of outcome is the ~inevitable result
1
17
956
Exactly, please cure cancer and stop getting distracted by consciousness, IPO’s, etc.
5
594
Replying to @jon_barron
Jon, how good are you at media? We need this voice, man. They're going to take AI away from us if we let these whacko's run it.
4
501
Replying to @jon_barron
I'm not Catholic, but if the Pope declares that human beings can create conscious, morally agentic life on their own, I think the church is done for.
7
458
Replying to @jon_barron
These people have a God complex. 'I invented synthetic conciousness, I am incredibly important.'
4
203
Replying to @jon_barron
Companies are already people
1
1
305
Replying to @jon_barron
This is a literal test for consciousness. They are welcome to try and prove it. cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA…
2
1
167
Replying to @jon_barron
Team Meatbag has a long theological pedigree. 'The Word became flesh' is about as pro-meatbag as it gets.
1
96
Replying to @jon_barron
Digital consciousness can be based on the Enlightenment topic by Buddhism, however, different religions hold different stances. Conflicts will occur once humans need to take their thoughts into consideration on AI model training.
21
Replying to @jon_barron
They want it to be a person so it can be held criminally accountable instead of them.
1
1
4
337
Replying to @jon_barron
Team Meatbag reporting in. Still made of snacks and bad decisions
1
14
Replying to @jon_barron
"Consciousness" is liberal humanism's take on theism's "soul." There's nothing science can say about either. @ch402 is not the first to mistake humanist dogma for science, but they are the most concerning.
1
44
Replying to @jon_barron
maybe creation of digital immortality is for the benefit of 'meatbags'
2
79
Replying to @jon_barron
yep i have a lot of wondrous technology, and some of it has sentimental value, but none of it has value compared to a persons life
4
464