Trump's push for term change

President Trump has initiated a rebranding effort by promoting the use of the term "super intelligence" (SI) in place of "artificial intelligence" (AI) in official American documents. He argues that the word "artificial" implies the technology is "false," and has labeled those who still use "artificial intelligence" as "the enemy."

Name changes and public response

This effort is part of a broader initiative to rename several geographical locations, including the Gulf of Mexico, Mount Denali, and Lake Ontario, since January 2025. However, these changes have had limited success, as the public continues to use the original names more frequently in searches.

Corporate adoption of new term

Some technology company executives have started using the term "super intelligence" following a summit on the topic hosted by Trump. The decree, signed on September 29, applies only to federal agencies, but some business leaders have voluntarily adopted the new terminology.

Executives embracing the term

Elon Musk, Satya Nadella, and Jensen Huang have publicly committed to using "super intelligence" in their companies. Musk renamed SpaceX's AI division to "SpaceX Super Intelligence," while Nadella and Huang have used the term in public statements. Others, like Marc Benioff, have partially adopted the term but were not at the summit.

Limited public and industry uptake

Despite the efforts of government and some business leaders, the term "super intelligence" has not gained widespread acceptance. Google search data shows that "artificial intelligence" and its acronym "AI" are still far more commonly searched than "super intelligence" or "SI."