Artificial intelligence is changing its name—at least in the United States. Donald Trump has decided to replace the acronym AI (Artificial Intelligence) with SI (Super Intelligence), arguing that the new term better reflects the capabilities the technology has achieved. This decision is not merely a matter of communication; it became official on September 29, 2026, through an executive order directed at U.S. federal agencies.
The president had already hinted at the proposal during his address to the United Nations General Assembly, after asking his supporters to vote on social media for a new name for AI. The alternatives included Superior Intelligence, Extreme Intelligence, and Supreme Intelligence, but in the end, Super Intelligence prevailed.
Why does Trump want to replace the term "AI"?
The main reason has to do with the meaning of the word “artificial.” According to Trump, the term suggests something false or inauthentic, whereas artificial intelligence systems now represent a concrete, advanced technology capable of transforming numerous sectors.
The president also stated that he had discussed the new name with Xi Jinping during the Chinese leader’s visit to the United States, claiming that Xi had also welcomed the proposal. However, there has been no public confirmation from Xi regarding the adoption of the term.
The decision is part of the U.S. strategy to strengthen the technology sector, at a time when competition with China for leadership in artificial intelligence continues to be a priority for Washington.
Who was present at the White House, and who signed the agreement?
On September 29, Trump hosted a meeting at the White House with some of the leading figures in the global technology industry. The meeting was attended by Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg of Meta, Jensen Huang of Nvidia, Sundar Pichai of Google, Dario Amodei of Anthropic, and Greg Brockman, president of OpenAI.
Also in attendance were Satya Nadella of Microsoft, Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, Lisa Su of AMD, and Alex Karp of Palantir, as well as several representatives of the U.S. administration and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
During the meeting, the White House Accord on Super Intelligence—a voluntary agreement on the security of advanced systems—was signed. Along with Trump, representatives from Google, Anthropic, Meta, OpenAI, Nvidia, and xAI signed the agreement.
The agreement calls for internal reviews of the models, independent audits, risk assessments, and greater oversight by the companies’ governing bodies. However, it does not introduce any legally binding obligations: Trump himself described it as an agreement based on a moral commitment.
Microsoft, Amazon, AMD, and Palantir, although present at the meeting, are not among the signatories. This does not necessarily mean that they rejected the new name or opposed the agreement, as no official reasons for their decision not to sign have been made public.
Who supports the new name, and who disagrees?
Among the most outspoken supporters of the new name is Elon Musk, who has publicly endorsed the acronym SI and announced his intention to change the name of SpaceXAI to SpaceXSI.
Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, has also begun using the new terminology, going so far as to describe data centers as facilities dedicated to superintelligence. Meta, on the other hand, was already incorporating the concept of superintelligence into its research strategy through the Meta Superintelligence Labs.
However, not all companies seem willing to abandon the acronym “AI.” Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has continued to use it in his communications, despite President Greg Brockman’s signing of the agreement. It is important to note that signing the safety document does not require companies to adopt the new name.
The most significant criticism comes from the scientific community. Pedro Domingos, a professor of computer science at the University of Washington, has called the use of the term “superintelligence” to describe current systems misleading.
Democratic Senator Mark Warner also objected to the decision, noting that changing the name of the technology does nothing to address the risks associated with its development.
What really changes for artificial intelligence?
The executive order requires U.S. federal agencies to use “Super Intelligence” and “SI” in official communications, on government websites, and in non-regulatory documents. However, it does not require retroactive changes to contracts, regulations, or historical documents.
The most important distinction remains the scientific one. In the technology sector, “superintelligence” generally refers to a hypothetical form of artificial intelligence capable of surpassing human cognitive performance in nearly all areas—a level that currently available systems have not yet attained.
The new definition proposed by Trump thus ends up using the same term to describe very different technologies, creating potential confusion between AI’s current capabilities and future research goals.
For now, the acronym SI remains primarily an American institutional choice, while AI continues to be the most widely used term in the international technology sector. This shift demonstrates just how much language, too, has become part of the political and economic debate on artificial intelligence. But when it comes to evaluating the progress of this technology, its actual capabilities will continue to matter—not the name by which it is presented.
