The facts
US President Donald Trump has ordered federal agencies to use the term 'Super Intelligence' (SI) instead of 'artificial intelligence' (AI), which he described as 'inaccurate' and 'ineloquent.' Trump announced the change at the United Nations General Assembly, stating that US federal documents would adopt the new term. This rebranding effort follows previous instances where Trump renamed geographical locations in federal documents. However, the tech industry and researchers have shown little inclination to adopt the new terminology. Computer science professor Pedro Domingos told DW that most AI is not superintelligence - it's just different intelligence, and calling current AI models 'superintelligence' is misleading. Experts note that the term 'artificial intelligence' was coined in 1956 and has been in use for 70 years. Critics suggest that changing the name will not alleviate public fears surrounding AI, such as job losses or loss of human control. A recent poll indicated that about half of respondents in six countries supported a pause in AI development due to potential risks. Senator Bernie Sanders has also co-introduced legislation to ban the development of 'artificial superintelligence' that humans cannot control. While some major US AI companies might benefit from branding that emphasizes their advanced models, the broader adoption of 'Super Intelligence' remains uncertain, with experts like Domingos suggesting the AI field is more likely to resist the change.
Our take
What a colossal, self-important asshole. The man who brought us 'covfefe' and a vocabulary that would shame a toddler has decided, in his infinite wisdom, that the entire field of artificial intelligence has a branding problem. Not the existential risk, not the job displacement, not the massive concentration of corporate power. No, the real issue is that the term 'artificial intelligence' is, and we quote from the stable genius himself, 'inaccurate' and 'ineloquent.' Shit. This is the same guy who thinks windmills cause cancer. Now he's worried about the *eloquence* of a 70-year-old scientific term while standing at the fucking United Nations, presumably because he thinks 'Super Intelligence' sounds more like a product he could slap his name on and sell for $399. The vanity is breathtaking. He's essentially throwing a tantrum because the established name doesn't make the technology sound cool enough for him. It's like a toddler insisting his broccoli be called 'power trees' before he'll eat it, except this toddler has the nuclear codes and a history of trying to rename federal property. Of course, the actual experts - the people who, you know, build and study this shit - think this is the dumbest fucking idea since injecting bleach. Professor Pedro Domingos pointed out the obvious: most AI is not superintelligence, it's just different intelligence. Calling today's glorified pattern-matching algorithms 'Super Intelligence' is like calling a fucking Roomba 'Super Colonizer' because it maps your living room. It's a lie. A stupid, transparent lie designed to make a fragile man feel like he's overseeing something more impressive than it is. And the best part? The entire tech industry and research community is almost certainly going to tell him to go fuck off. They've been using 'AI' since 1956. They have conferences, journals, and billions in funding all tied to the term. They're not about to switch to 'SI' because a reality TV grifter with a thesaurus allergy had a whim. This is performative bullshit of the highest order, a meaningless decree from a man who confuses issuing orders with actually governing. It accomplishes nothing except to remind everyone that his primary concern is always, always, the superficial branding, never the substance. He's a clown trying to put a superhero sticker on a reactor core and calling it a day. The fact that he did this while critics are warning about real control issues and Senator Sanders is trying to ban uncontrolled superintelligence just makes the whole charade more pathetic. He's rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic and insisting they now be called 'Throne Seats for Winners.' What an absolute, world-class cunt.
