AI Ethics for Small Business Owners: Why the Pope Says It's the Biggest Threat

When the Pope calls out artificial intelligence as humanity's biggest challenge, it's worth a closer look. In his first official address, Pope Leo XIV framed AI not as a tech trend but as an ethical crisis, on par with the Industrial Revolution. His words weren’t about church politics. They were about labor, justice, and dignity.

That message should matter to every small business owner trying to navigate AI tools in 2025. Because whether you're using ChatGPT to write sales copy or automating client follow-ups, you're not just optimizing your workflow. You're participating in a societal shift.

AI Ethics for Small Business Owners Isn’t Theoretical

It might sound like something reserved for tech companies and philosophers. But here’s the reality: if you run a business, you're already making ethical decisions about AI every day.

• Are you using AI to replace people, or to empower them?

• Do your clients know when they’re interacting with a bot?

• Are you checking AI outputs for bias, misinformation, or tone-deaf messaging?

These questions don’t require a theology degree. They require leadership.

What the Pope Actually Said

Pope Leo XIV said AI development poses "new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor." That should ring a bell for any of us who see the dark side of automation: layoffs, surveillance creep, and the erasure of nuance in human communication.

He also linked his mission to Pope Leo XIII, who confronted the ethics of the first industrial revolution. This isn’t about nostalgia. It’s about precedent. The Church isn’t anti-tech. It’s pro-human.

Here's What That Looks Like In Practice

Let’s say you’re a solopreneur running a digital agency. You start using ChatGPT to handle 90% of your blog posts and social captions. That’s smart.

But if you:

• Never disclose AI use to clients

• Stop paying your human writers without notice

• Ship bland, generic content that misrepresents real expertise

Then you’re not just being efficient. You’re being dishonest. That’s what Pope Leo XIV is warning against. Not the tech itself, but the mindset that treats human dignity as optional.

Ethics and Strategy Go Hand in Hand

Ethical use of AI is also better business. Why?

• Transparency builds trust

• Ethical choices reduce long-term risk

• Human-AI collaboration creates better outcomes than either alone

Want your audience to trust your brand? Let them know how you use AI and why. Want to future-proof your operations? Don’t just automate. Document your choices. Build in human checkpoints. Show your work.

What “Digital Dignity” Means for You

Institutions like Santa Clara University are pushing the concept of "digital dignity," the idea that automation should serve human flourishing, not replace it. For you, that might mean:

• Letting clients opt out of AI-generated content

• Training staff to audit and refine AI output

• Using resources like SuperSmarts.ai to find the right balance between tech and touch

You Don’t Need to Be a Philosopher to Be Ethical

Look, you’re busy. You don’t have time for endless debates about machine consciousness. But that doesn’t mean you can ignore AI ethics for small business owners.

If AI saves you 10 hours a week, great. Now what are you doing with that time? If it boosts your profits, great. Who benefits from those gains?

These are simple questions with high-stakes consequences. The Pope isn't calling for a pause on AI. He’s calling for discernment. And frankly, so should you.

My Take

AI isn’t neutral. It reflects the values of the people who use it. You don’t need a Vatican speech to figure that out, but it sure doesn’t hurt.

As a small business owner, you have more influence than you think. The tools you choose, the automations you build, the disclosures you make—all of it adds up.

So if the Pope is paying attention to AI ethics, maybe it’s time you did too.

Want a practical starting point?

Download How to Use AI for Marketing Without Losing Your Brand Voice. It's free, blunt, and actually helpful.

See you next time! Or until the robots take over 🤖.