According to HVG, on September 30, 2026 President Donald Trump issued an executive order instructing every government department and agency to stop using the term "artificial intelligence" (and "AI") and to adopt the term "superintelligence" instead. The order's stated rationale is to "acknowledge the continuously expanding limits of technological progress and the unlimited opportunities they offer the American people."
Under the order, the phrases "artificial intelligence" and "AI" may no longer be used in federal communications and documents.
Public message and reaction
On Thursday Trump reinforced the change with a post on his Truth Social platform, writing: "The White House considers anyone who uses the 'Artificial Intelligence' term instead of the broadly accepted new and much more accurate 'Superintelligence' to be our ENEMY!"
Politico notes that "superintelligence" is already a long-standing technical term in professional discourse, generally used to describe intelligence that surpasses humans across many domains; that technical meaning stands apart from the political framing offered in the executive order.
Private sector response and prior renamings
HVG reports that Elon Musk — who led the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at the start of Trump's second term and later left after a falling-out with the president (the DOGE was subsequently abolished) — said he will rename his SpaceXAI company to SpaceXSI.
The HVG article also recalls that earlier in the term Trump renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the "American Gulf," and more recently rebranded Lake Ontario on the Canada–U.S. border as "America-lake." These prior renamings are mentioned alongside the new language directive.
Why this matters
A government-mandated change in official terminology is not only linguistic: it can affect public policy discussions, legal texts, and regulatory frameworks. Because "superintelligence" carries a specific meaning in scientific and technical communities, a politically driven redefinition of terms may create disputes and confusion among experts, policymakers, and the media.
The executive order and the resulting shift in government language could influence how the press covers the topic, how research programs are labeled, and the wording used in future regulation.
