What Is Super Intelligence (SI)? The AI Rename Explained

What was announced at the UN?

On Sept 22, 2026, during his address to the UN General Assembly in New York, President Trump said United States government documents would stop saying "artificial intelligence" and would instead use "super intelligence," or "SI." He said he hoped the rest of the world would follow the same wording, according to reporting by Axios and Breaking Defense.

His stated reason was the first word. Axios reported that he objected to "artificial" because it makes the technology sound fake. The rename was presented as a matter of official language rather than a new rule for how the technology is built, bought, or deployed.

The same speech included a broader policy message. Axios and YourStory reported that he rejected international efforts to control the technology, said he would not stifle something he called bigger than the Industrial Revolution, framed the moment as a race with China, and said the Justice Department would watch the sector if intervention became necessary.

Why did the name change?

The public reason given was tone. In the president's framing, calling the technology "artificial" undersells what it does. Reporting from TechRepublic adds useful context on how the wording was chosen: before the UN speech he had tested alternative names such as "superior intelligence" in online polls, and the White House then used the new phrase in its own summary of the remarks.

That sequence matters for anyone trying to read the change accurately. The new term arrived through political communication channels first, a speech and a White House summary, rather than through a technical standards body or a research consensus.

How did the change reach the government?

The clearest documented step inside the federal government came at the State Department. The AP, published by ABC News, reported that the Bureau of International Organization Affairs received an email titled "Change in Nomenclature AI to SI" instructing staff to switch all references to super intelligence. AP also reported that it was unclear whether other bureaus or agencies had followed.

The following day the term appeared in diplomatic practice. AP, published by WPXI, reported that US representatives used the SI term at a UN Security Council meeting on AI on Sept 23. The same reporting noted a practical knock-on question: a broader switch could mean renaming the "AI Force" the president had announced to an "SI Force."

Who has adopted the term so far?

Adoption so far is concentrated close to the administration. Reported examples include the White House summary of the UN remarks, the State Department bureau that received the nomenclature email, US representatives at the Security Council, and allies of the president who picked it up quickly.

One on-air moment illustrates how fast that happened. Gizmodo reported that around Sept 24, adviser Sebastian Gorka corrected a Newsmax anchor who said "AI race," telling him the term is now SI.

The most-discussed adoption story involved China. During President Xi Jinping's state visit to Washington that week, Trump posted that Xi seemed to like the new name. China's foreign ministry later said it respects the US side's wording, per Gulf News, and a White House fact sheet said the two leaders agreed to use "super intelligence" to describe the technology, per Gizmodo.

We keep a running record of each documented adoption, with dates and source links, on the SI Tracker.

What does "superintelligence" already mean in AI research?

Here is where the rename gets complicated. The word already has an established meaning in the field. As Axios explained, superintelligence refers to an intellect that greatly exceeds human cognitive performance across virtually all domains, a definition popularized by the philosopher Nick Bostrom in his 2014 book "Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies."

That existing meaning carries weight in two directions at once. It describes an industry goal, and Meta uses the word in the name of its AI division. It is also the focus of efforts to slow or halt advanced AI development, because the same capability level is what safety researchers worry about most. Axios reported that it was unclear whether the White House intended to invoke that existing meaning at all.

Our companion explainer walks through the distinction in more detail, including a side by side comparison: AI vs SI: What Is the Difference?

What does the rename change, and what stays the same?

The software is the same software. A rename of official terminology does not retrain a model, change what a chatbot can do, or alter how a company builds or buys these tools. Based on the reporting available, the change is in official language.

What can change is the paperwork and the vocabulary around the technology:

• Federal documents, briefings, and summaries that use the new phrase.
• Diplomatic language at multilateral bodies, as already seen at the Security Council.
• Program and office names, with the "AI Force" to "SI Force" question raised by AP as one live example.
• Press coverage and marketing copy that follow the government's wording.

For owners and operators, that distinction is the whole practical story. We cover it directly in What the Shift to Super Intelligence Means for Business Owners.

Will the label stick?

Expert opinion reported so far leans skeptical. Experts quoted by the BBC, summarized by To Vima, doubted the new label will catch on across the tech industry, because researchers reserve the term for far more advanced systems than the tools in wide use today. The same reporting noted that some of the president's allies adopted it immediately, and that the move follows earlier renamings of the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario.

Context from the same week cuts the other way on the policy question. YourStory reported that UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for stronger international safeguards, and that AI company representatives took part in a UN Security Council discussion on AI and security. The naming debate is happening alongside an active argument about oversight.

What happens next?

Three questions are worth watching, and each has a clear observable answer over time.

First, agency spread. The documented instruction covers one State Department bureau, and AP reported uncertainty about the rest of the federal government. Watch for the phrase appearing in other agencies' documents, solicitations, and program names.

Second, industry usage. Researchers and companies already use "superintelligence" for a far more advanced capability level. Whether they accept the new everyday usage, keep the research meaning, or run both in parallel will show up in their own publications and product language.

Third, durability. Terminology changes introduced through political communication can fade or settle in. The dated record of what has happened so far is here: The SI Rename Timeline.

We will update this explainer as new reporting lands, and each update will keep its attribution to the outlet that did the work.