Brother Robot

Generative artificial intelligence is transforming our world, offering extraordinary possibilities while also posing big challenges. To address them, this book brings into dialogue the Franciscan intellectual tradition, the encyclical Magnifica humanitas and contemporary reflection on AI.

The first part shows how the Franciscan tradition contributed to the development of modern scientific and technological rationality. This historical process has generated great advances, but it has also led to the technocratic paradigm. In response, the book proposes a humanism of fraternity, inspired by St. Francis, and applies it to five fundamental areas: epistemology, politics, economics, culture and ecology.

Can a robot be our brother? The title does not attribute personality or rights to AI. Just as Francis called the sun, water and fire his brothers and sisters, the metaphor asks how we relate to our own creations, so that technology serves human dignity, the common good and universal fraternity. “The metaphor does not humanize machines; it humanizes the way we use them.”

Also available in French as Frère Robot.