Trump pushes “superintelligence” instead of AI

Trump is pushing to replace the term “artificial intelligence” with “superintelligence” in federal documents. The renaming does not change the technology or ease opposition to data centers.

Trump proposes replacing the term “artificial intelligence” with “superintelligence”

U.S. President Donald Trump has called for using the name Super Intelligence (SI) instead of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The initiative comes amid growing public opposition in the United States to the construction of data centers: Trump supports their large-scale development across the country.

In a post on Truth Social on October 27, Trump asked The Wall Street Journal when it would start calling artificial intelligence “SI — Super Intelligence,” as, he said, “practically everyone” already does or soon will. He called the old term “very bad and inaccurate” and said it would soon be officially banned from all relevant documents and other materials because of its imprecise wording.

The president can influence terminology in documents issued by the federal executive branch, but cannot impose it on everyone else. Moreover, the claim that almost everyone uses the name “superintelligence” does not reflect actual practice: the term is uncommon, including among technology company executives.

Last month, Trump signed an executive order directing the executive branch to use SI instead of AI. As The Hill reported, the decision had little effect on Americans’ attitudes toward data centers — facilities needed to operate and develop AI.

Why the president thinks the old name is inaccurate

Trump also called those who talk about artificial intelligence “enemies.” In his view, the word “artificial” suggests that the intelligence is not real. “That’s not the case,” he wrote. “In fact, it is amazing.”

On October 4, the president announced the creation of the Super Intelligence Force (SIF). In the same post, he mentioned the “Historic White House Super Intelligence Agreement,” at which, he said, the world’s biggest technology companies met and reaffirmed their commitments to Americans.

Trump described the SIF’s mission as coordinating the federal government’s efforts to ensure U.S. leadership in superintelligence. He also said that, in the view of many, this technology is greater in scale than the Industrial Revolution and the advent of the internet, and that its development should protect the interests and improve the lives of all Americans.

Terminology and industry interests

Artificial intelligence is already widely used in photography. Various AI features are used in the autofocus systems of nearly all modern cameras, while photo and video editing software uses AI for a wide range of tasks. At the same time, the development of this technology threatens the jobs of some creative professionals.

Changing the name alters neither the technology’s capabilities nor its impact on the industry. The debate over data centers, however, continues: according to a Pew Research Center study published on September 22, 2026, Americans’ attitudes toward these facilities are becoming increasingly negative. The issue has taken on particular importance ahead of the midterm elections scheduled for next week.

It remains unclear whether the SI label will make data centers more appealing to the public. As a humorous example of alternative branding, one might imagine the name “super-duper mega-ultra deluxe data centers 2.0.”