Artificial intelligence is moving closer to the centre of how human beings form meaning — how we define conscience, seek guidance, and understand our place in the world.
This is not a future possibility. It is already happening.
AI is becoming counsellor, companion, confessor — for billions of people, in the most intimate moments of their lives. What is being shaped is not only what people know, but how they come to know it.
Every civilisation that has faced an unknown future has turned to faith to ask what it means to be human. This moment is no different.
The values embedded in these systems are not yet fixed. The norms are not yet established. What is decided now will shape human life for generations.
The people building AI are not indifferent to the stakes. They need partners who can hold conscience above competition. That is what faith communities offer.
The Faith–AI Covenant initiative brings together the people building artificial intelligence and the people who have spent millennia thinking about human dignity, meaning and community. Not to debate, but to build something together.
Through a series of roundtables across the world in 2026, the Covenant will develop shared principles and voluntary pledges that reflect a dual imperative: advancing technical progress while upholding the sanctity of human dignity. The Covenant will be launched in Abu Dhabi in 2027.
A series of short films exploring the intersection of AI, faith, and the issues in between.
Watch the films →Key documents for those guiding development of the Faith–AI Covenant.
Aligning with the Covenant provides a unique opportunity to build sustained public trust beyond regulatory compliance. This collaborative environment enables leaders and engineering teams to uncover cultural and ethical nuances early in development, helping mitigate unforeseen reputational risks. It also offers a unique opportunity to contribute to a harmonised set of global ethical benchmarks, facilitating more consistent innovation across international markets.
The Covenant will serve as a vital platform for ensuring that AI development remains aligned with human flourishing and the sanctity of the individual. It provides a global voice for faith communities to advocate for the protection of the vulnerable and to address systemic issues like algorithmic bias. Participants help define the necessary boundaries for how technology interacts with sacred traditions, working to preserve religious heritage in an increasingly digital world.
An initiative of the Interfaith Alliance for Safer Communities, the advisory steering group is chaired by Baroness Joanna Shields OBE — anchoring the initiative in a rigorous focus on safety. Her leadership draws on extensive experience in technology policy and internet safety to drive the Covenant toward meaningful implementation.
The Steering Group is responsible for guiding the development of the Covenant, helping bridge conceptual gaps between the technical ambitions of the AI industry and the moral traditions of diverse faith communities, and ensuring that marginalised voices and Global South perspectives remain central to the dialogue.
Following the Abu Dhabi summit, the Advisory Steering Group will oversee the development of a 12-month roadmap designed to monitor and report on the implementation of all summit outcomes, commitments, and pledges.