
Why Pope Leo is right about AI and tech bros
From The Big Tech Show by Irish Independent
June 2, 2026 · 34 min
About this episode
The episode discusses the challenges faced by companies in implementing AI and the ethical concerns raised by Pope Leo regarding technology's impact on human dignity and work.
AI was supposed to replace workers at speed. Instead, some of the world’s biggest companies are finding costly problems, poor results and frustrated customers. Adrian Weckler and JJ Clarke examine why firms such as Starbucks, Pizza Hut and Klarna are scaling back AI projects. They also discuss the warning from Pope Leo, who has criticised AI for threatening human dignity, work and genuine human judgement, as companies race to cut costs and automate jobs before the technology is truly ready. Why you can trust the Irish Independent: learn about our editorial guidelines and AI use See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
People in this episode
Host: Adrian Weckler
Guest: JJ Clarke
Topics covered
- AI
- technology
- automation
- human dignity
- business challenges
- cost-cutting
Keywords
- AI
- automation
- human dignity
- business
- technology
- cost-cutting
- Pope Leo
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Starbucks, Pizza Hut, Klarna
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