Patriarch of Lisbon calls on Catholic University of Portugal to guide artificial intelligence

Cardinal Rui Valério, the Patriarch of Lisbon, urged the Catholic University of Portugal (UCP) to lead the development of artificial intelligence during the national ceremony to open the academic year on October 26, 2026. He stated that a university must participate in scientific discovery and innovation rather than observing technological revolutions from the outside.

As the institution's chancellor, the Patriarch said that Catholic universities have an additional responsibility to help humanity discern what should be done with new capabilities. He noted that technology is not entirely neutral because technological choices include specific criteria, priorities, and conceptions of the human person.

Cardinal Valério advised that scientific development should involve dialogue with philosophy, law, economics, the humanities, and theology. He warned that not everything that is technically possible is humanly desirable.