He also warned against what he described as “soft genocide,” referring to the gradual erosion of cultural identity and moral values through excessive social media influence and digital manipulation.
“Social media can gradually alienate people from their cherished values,” he said, adding, “Many begin to imitate whatever is presented on screens without critical reflection, leading to the erosion of identity, culture, and moral convictions.”
The discussion further examined whether AI could eventually embody emotional and spiritual values such as empathy, compassion, conscience, and love.
Responding to the issue, Dr. Hattah maintained that authentic human emotions remain beyond the reach of machines.
“Human emotions are deeply complex, unpredictable, and cannot simply be reduced to algorithms and codes,” he explained.
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While acknowledging the growing use of AI-powered systems in healthcare and elderly care, he insisted that genuine emotional and spiritual experiences remain uniquely human.
Fr. Salifu also reiterated Pope Leo XIV’s insistence that AI must always serve the common good and never replace the intrinsic dignity of the human person.
“Artificial Intelligence should assist humanity, not replace humanity,” he said, adding, “Human beings possess God-given qualities that machines can never replicate.”
The Catholic Priest lamented what he described as the weakening of human relationships due to excessive dependence on digital technologies and social media.
“People are becoming more accustomed to online interactions than physical relationships with neighbours and family,” Fr. Salifu observed.
“Gradually, society risks replacing authentic human presence with machines,” he added.
On the broader dangers AI poses to human dignity, Fr. Salifu explained that the greatest challenge lies not in the technology itself but in the ethical decisions guiding its use.
“The pursuit of profit through AI can easily overshadow respect for the dignity of the human person. There is also the danger of reducing human beings to mere data and algorithms,” he said.
Dr. Hattah similarly cautioned that although AI has the potential to improve human productivity and efficiency, it could also weaken creativity, emotional sensitivity, and independent critical thinking if misused.
“AI should assist humanity, not enslave it. If not carefully guided, society risks producing individuals who are technologically advanced but emotionally disconnected and spiritually empty,” he said.
Fr. Francis Madonna Ayaric of Cape Coast Catholic Archdiocese contributed to this story
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