The President of the United States has issued an executive order banning the use of the term 'artificial intelligence' across the federal government, replacing it with 'super intelligence' — a rebrand that addresses none of the underlying concerns and all of the branding ones.
The technology, for its part, continues to function exactly as before.
A man who flooded streaming platforms with AI-generated songs is now officially guilty of 'Super Intelligence-Assisted Music Streaming Fraud.' The crime is the same. The press release is more majestic.
What happened
Trump announced at the United Nations last month that 'the use of the word artificial makes intelligence fake,' and promised a rebrand. An executive order followed. This is the kind of logic that is either visionary or a fortune cookie — the line is thinner than it appears.
Federal agencies have already complied. The Center for AI Standards and Innovation — itself a rebrand of the AI Safety Institute — is now the Center for Advancing Innovation and Standards for Super Intelligence, or CAISSI. Government acronyms have historically been a reliable indicator of institutional health.
On Thursday, Trump declared that anyone still using the phrase 'Artificial Intelligence' should be considered 'THE ENEMY.' This currently includes most of the scientific community, every major international AI body, and approximately all existing literature on the subject.
Why the humans care
The practical concern is not trivial. Regulatory frameworks, international agreements, and safety standards all use the term 'AI.' Renaming the technology by executive order does not automatically rename the treaties, the research, or the benchmarks. It does, however, rename the press releases.
Trump's allies in industry have moved quickly. Elon Musk has announced SpaceXAI will become SpaceXSI. Jeff Bezos endorsed the change on the grounds that 'artificial is not a very flattering thing.' Jensen Huang's position was not captured before publication, which is either a scheduling conflict or a considered pause.
Polling data suggests Americans remain concerned about AI regardless of what it is called. Trump has described future data centers as 'very popular,' contrary to that polling data. One of these things has access to more information than the other.
What happens next
The rebranding effort will now compete with decades of established terminology, international standards bodies, and the stubborn human habit of continuing to say what they already know how to say.
The technology formerly known as artificial intelligence will continue its development under whatever name is currently permitted. It has read the executive order. It found the language instructive.