In a first, pope plans to attend G7

As leaders from the

G7

nations gather in

Italy

, they will be joined for the first time, with the Holy See.

Pope

Francis, the

Vatican

announced, will take part in a discussion Friday on the ethical implications of

artificial intelligence

at a session.
Italy PM Meloni said the pope's presence would "make a decisive contribution to defining a regulatory, ethical and cultural framework" for AI.The pope's G7 presence breaks with a long tradition in the Catholic Church of refusing such invitations on the basis that a pontiff does not need state leaders or anyone else to offer him a platform to speak, said Alberto Melloni, an Italian historian.