Pope warns of AI dangers, urges fair wages for migrants on Singapore visit

Pope Francis, on a visit to Singapore, has warned of the negative effects of artificial intelligence (AI) on society and called for “fair” wages for migrant workers.

The comments by the head of the Catholic Church came on Thursday as the high-tech city-state became his final stop on a 12-day Asia Pacific tour.

Technology developments risk isolating individuals and putting them into a false reality, Francis said, adding that AI should be used to bring people closer together and to promote understanding and solidarity within society.

He also cautioned that AI should not make people forget about what is important: human relationships.

This is not the first time the 87-year-old pontiff has weighed in on AI. In June, he called for a ban on “lethal autonomous weapons” during an address to the leaders of the Group of Seven top industrial democracies at the bloc’s summit held in Italy.

Singapore is the last stop on the pope’s whirlwind tour, which saw him visit Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and East Timor. In East Timor, he held a mass for 600,000 faithful – almost half the nation’s population.

According to the Vatican, out of the nearly six million residents of Singapore, some 176,000 are Catholic.

A large mass at Singapore’s National Stadium was expected to attract about 55,000 people on Thursday afternoon.

Reporting from outside the venue, Al Jazeera’s Patrick Fok said Catholics in Singapore were “simply excited and elated” to be receiving the pope.

He added that people from across the region had travelled to the city-state for the occasion, including from Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines.