AI companies have a poor ethical reputation — they’re wrecking the environment to build data centers, they disregard privacy, they steal our words to populate their databases, they’re run by billionaires. They’re beginning to realize that they should do something to improve their image, so what do they do? They decide to steal from religion.
As concerns mount over artificial intelligence and its rapid integration into society, tech companies are increasingly turning to faith leaders for guidance on how to shape the technology — a surprising about-face on Silicon Valley’s longstanding skepticism of organized religion.
Leaders from various religious groups met last week with representatives from companies including Anthropic and OpenAI for the inaugural “Faith-AI Covenant” roundtable in New York to discuss how best to infuse morality and ethics into the fast-developing technology. It was organized by the Geneva-based Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities, which seeks to take on issues such as extremism, radicalization and human trafficking. The roundtable is expected to be the first of several around the globe, including in Beijing, Nairobi and Abu Dhabi.
I don’t think Anthropic and OpenAI have anything to bring to the roundtable, but they they ignorantly assume that religions have the key to moral behavior, all evidence to the contrary.
“Regulation can’t keep up with this,” she said. But the leaders of the world’s religions, with billions of followers globally, have the “expertise of shepherding people’s moral safety,” she reasoned. Faith leaders ought to have a voice, Shields said.
She “reasoned.” I don’t think so. Those are the words of someone who has swallowed the propaganda that religions have always generated. Yeah, right, let’s turn to these guys for lessons in morality.
For ethical guidance they should consult the AI in the Science Fiction story that says “now there is a god”.
They want to religious leaders to “infuse morality” into AI Technologies? They are asking the wrong people about morality.
“But the leaders of the world’s religions, with billions of followers globally, have the “expertise of shepherding people’s moral safety,”
Shepherding, yeah gather the sheep, tell them God says AI is good, let them spread the word and the sheep will employ cognitive dissonance, willful ignorance and all their other tools that make the faithful believe (AI is good). An old trick religious of the world have used to control what humans believe.
The tech companies do not want it to be morally correct, the just want people to believe AI is. Do they have plans to infuse religion into their AI?
@1. birgerjohansson : Hmm.. I think that’s exactly what the TechBro’s are aiming for..
With themslves running or otherwise in charge of the AI somehow and it being their model “god”..
“shepherding people’s moral safety.” Really. Then they’re hardly experts, because they suck at it. Religion supplants morality, which is as useful to techbros as it is to state powers.
“Gott mit uns.”
Mark 10:21, Luke 12:32-33, Luke 14:33, Luke 18:23, Matthew 19:20-21, Matthew 6:24-25
The commands of Jesus. Sell all you have and give to the poor
Christian demagogues: “Jesus didn’t mean me!”
In a couple of the WhatsApp groups I’m in there is a big controversy raging about new translations of classical Islamic works done by AI. Even translations done by Arabic speakers with expertise in Islamic scholarship are subject to a lot of dispute. I expect the same when it meddles in other religions.
What religions are, are experts in sales and marketing, so perhaps that’s what she meant.
The whims of an imaginary deity are not morality.
hillaryrettig1 @ #7 — “What religions are, are experts in sales and marketing, so perhaps that’s what she meant.”
That seems fitting given that “AI” is a marketing term of art covering a range of technologies, some of which are more problematic than others. The technologies themselves are amoral, of course. The big players…the humans…are looking for the trappings of respectability and morality to gain social acceptance and keep governments out of their way.
“…longstanding skepticism of organized religion..”
English is a funny language. the spelling of words and their pronunciation can vary widely. Take for instance “organized religion ‘. It is actually, in proper English, pronounced “organized crime”.
Ya can’t spell “FAITH” without “AI”.
Taking control of society by artificial intelligence obviously needs tactics from taking control of society by invented omniscience.
I feel relieved that tineye.com identified that pic as an Adobe stock image, rather than something concocted for our esteemed host by a bunch of Nvidia chips.
But where did Adobe get it?
Pierce R. Butler @12
I did an image search and it said it was AI generated by an outfit called Magnific.
larpar @ # 13 – Interesting (tineye said the Adobe catalog was the only place they found it – I guess their scan hasn’t caught up with this post).
Not nearly enough blood to be a real Crusades photograph! ;-)
Let’s examine this subject from a more basic and all-encompassing perspective:
Religions are based on obscene, murderous, bigoted fiction books. In order to justify their fantasy, people use a ‘cafeteria style’ (pick & choose which conflicting bs statements to believe) approach.
There are no moral considerations in this plutocratic owned magat run nation. They are all sociopaths.
AI is just a ‘fool tool’ instructed from reading all the human bullshit ever written.
Martha and the Vandellas serenade me as I am caught in this murderous Death Spiral.
We might as well be in a Monty Python sketch, trying to get a ‘shrubbery’ for the Knights that say Nee! That would make just as much sense as this ‘AI got religion’ bullshit world.
Listen carefully to the David Bowie lyrics for the Queen song ‘Under Pressure’ for a more honest insight.
One more comment and then I’ll get back to computer refurb’ work and not bother you any more today.
Pigseth has a huge tattoo that refers to the bloody, xtian terrorist crusades on his ‘oh, so manly’ chest. That is just a symbol of how they want to push us back into a murderous Centuries old world of men ruling and women being silent breeders, WTF!
The owners of “AI” aren’t “looking for” moral authority, they’re BUYING it. This is just the latest instance of the longstanding collusion/symbiosis between the rich and powerful (who have money but not enough connection to the people) and organized religion (which has plenty of connection with ordinary people but needs money). So organized religion basically sells its connection to the people to whoever pays for it, like high-power PR firms but with lots of “God” rhetoric added.
The kind of people that turn to religion for moral guidance have no morals.
@16
I have already wasted too much time searching for that peephole on streets.
Seems like a perfect match to me. Both of them are ethics free monsters, both of them for similar reasons. Both suck money out of people in return for big promises but actually offer almost nothing in return. Both offer only the most vapid comfort to those who seek solace in it. Both make big promises that they not only fail to deliver but can’t and never will. Both re increasingly being exposed as utterly corrupt. Both are being decried more and more as people wake up to what they actually are. Both have a fanatical bunch of core followers who will never be convinced of anything bad about them. Both are uniquely bad for children.
Next 4 paragraphs left as an exercise for the reader….
Raging Bee @18,
Actually, the ownership is by equity holders: institutional investors, venture capital funds, sovereign wealth funds, and public‑market shareholders among them. That means many pensioners.
In short, ownership is diffuse, and what they are looking for is return on investment.
(My superannuation portfolio includes shares in Alphabet, for example)
shermanj,
Not just that. It is a part of the pattern.
cf. https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2026/03/04/that-put-the-fear-of-god-into-me/#comment-2294276
Actually, the ownership is by equity holders: institutional investors, venture capital funds, sovereign wealth funds, and public‑market shareholders among them. That means many pensioners.
Yeah, and I’m sure the majority shareholders are dutifully informing and listening to all those pensioners and giving them equal votes in meaningful elections, right? :-/
Also, if those corporations feel they have to suck up to backward authoritarian frauds to get “return on investment,” what does that say about the content and quality of their investment? Sounds to me like they can’t get voluntary buy-in, so they need preachers to tell people that God wants them to buy in.
Your claim was about the owners. You are imagining Monty Burns, not pensioners.
cf. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenAI#Corporate_structure as an example of what I mean.
Your business acumen is duly noted.
Here, for you, facts: https://s206.q4cdn.com/479360582/files/doc_financials/2025/q4/GOOG-10-K-2025.pdf
↓
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
[… relevant bit, my emphasis]
As of June 30, 2025, the aggregate market value of shares held by non‑affiliates of the registrant (based upon the closing sale prices of such shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on June 30, 2025) was approximately $1.9 trillion. For purposes of calculating the aggregate market value of shares held by non‑affiliates, we have assumed that all outstanding shares are held by non‑affiliates, except for shares held by each of our executive officers, directors, and 5% or greater stockholders. In the case of 5% or greater stockholders, we have not deemed such stockholders to be affiliates unless there are facts and circumstances which would indicate that such stockholders exercise any control over our company, or unless they hold 10% or more of our outstanding common stock.
These assumptions should not be deemed to constitute an admission that all executive officers, directors, and 5% or greater stockholders are, in fact, affiliates of our company, or that there are not other persons who may be deemed to be affiliates of our company. Further information concerning shareholdings of our officers, directors, and principal stockholders is included or incorporated by reference in Part III, Item 12 of this Annual Report on Form 10‑K.
As of January 28, 2026, there were 5,822 million shares of Alphabet’s Class A stock outstanding, 837 million shares of Alphabet’s Class B stock outstanding, and 5,438 million shares of Alphabet’s Class C stock outstanding.
AI prompt: “Be God.”