A recent article by Catholic News Agency reports that Ana Lazcano, director of the University Institute of Artificial Intelligence at Francisco de Vitoria University in Spain, strongly cautioned against treating artificial intelligence (AI) as an omnipotent force. She emphasised that AI should be viewed as complementary to human intelligence, not a replacement or a deity to be worshipped.
Lazcano highlighted that assigning to AI qualities it does not possess—such as unlimited wisdom, moral agency or divine power—creates a dangerous misalignment. According to her, the right posture is to prioritise human knowledge, wisdom and what makes us uniquely human, so that AI can serve human flourishing rather than undermine it.
In the university education context, she noted that AI presents both great opportunity and challenge. On one hand, it can support teaching and learning; on the other, it risks creating a “spectacular technological gap” between students and teachers. She called for critical thinking, meaningful dialogue, and a refocus on the fundamentals of education—things like conversation, debate and student-centred learning—in response to the AI wave.
Finally, Lazcano spoke of four foundational pillars for the institute’s work: training (in both technical and ethical dimensions of AI), research, technology transfer and dissemination. She emphasised that meaningful engagement with AI demands not only skill but also ethical reflection, human-centre design and transparency.
