"Super intelligence" (SI) now has two different meanings, and they point at opposite things. One is the label President Trump announced at the UN General Assembly on September 22, 2026, when he said US documents would stop saying "artificial intelligence" and say "Super Intelligence" instead — a rename for the AI we already have. The other is the term AI researchers have used since the late 1990s for a machine that beats every human at essentially every cognitive task — something nobody has built. The fastest way to tell them apart: ask whether today's ChatGPT counts.
Super intelligence (SI): the two definitions at a glance
Here is the whole disagreement in one table. Everything else in this article is detail.
Aspect | 1. Trump's "SI" | 2. Superintelligence in AI research |
|---|---|---|
Who uses it | The US President; US government documents | AI researchers, safety labs, AI companies |
What it refers to | The AI that exists today, under a new name | An intellect far beyond humans in virtually every domain |
In use since | September 22, 2026 | Bostrom's 1997 paper; mainstream after his 2014 book |
Does it include ChatGPT or Gemini? | Yes | No |
Does it exist yet? | Yes — it is a new label for real products | No — hypothetical, with no agreed arrival date |
Usual abbreviation | SI | ASI (artificial superintelligence) |
The practical problem is that the same two letters now describe a product you can log into today and a system that does not exist. In practice, that ambiguity shows up fastest in procurement documents and investor decks, where "we are deploying SI" reads as a much bigger claim than the writer intended.
Definition 1: Trump's "SI" is a rename, not a new technology
In his September 22, 2026 address to the 81st UN General Assembly, Trump said the US rejects global control schemes for "the Artificial Intelligence being spoken of so much now — hereinafter officially called 'Super Intelligence'." His stated reason was that the word "artificial" makes the technology "sound fake."
Two limits matter. First, the scope he named was US government documents — private companies, other governments and academic literature are not bound by it. Second, as of September 23, 2026 there is no published executive order or implementation memo; defense press reporting noted there was no official White House announcement on how the change would be carried out. For the full sequence — including the social media polls that produced the name — see our breakdown of the Trump UN speech renaming AI to SI.
So under definition 1, nothing about the technology changed. The capability is identical; only the label moved.
Definition 2: superintelligence in AI research means something nobody has built
The research term is older and more precise. Philosopher Nick Bostrom defined a superintelligence as "an intellect that is much smarter than the best human brains in practically every field, including scientific creativity, general wisdom and social skills." His 2014 book Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies made that definition the default across the field.
Researchers usually write this as ASI (artificial superintelligence): a system that would significantly outperform all humans across essentially all cognitive tasks. Bostrom also splits it into speed, collective and quality superintelligence — a system can exceed humans by being faster, by being many, or by being qualitatively smarter. None of these exist today.
AGI vs ASI vs SI
A three-step ladder is the simplest mental model: today's AI → AGI → ASI. AGI (artificial general intelligence) means matching humans across a broad range of tasks. ASI means exceeding them across essentially all of them. Trump's "SI" sits outside this ladder entirely — it is a naming decision, not a rung.
If you need the three terms side by side with sourced definitions, our comparison of AGI, ASI and SI in a single table covers the boundaries in more detail.
Is ChatGPT a super intelligence?
Under definition 1, yes — Trump's usage covers every current model, including ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude. Under definition 2, no. Current models are not superintelligent, and most researchers would say they have not cleared the AGI bar either, particularly on long-horizon autonomous work.
A common pattern we see: a team writes "SI-powered" into a proposal, and the reader assumes autonomous, superhuman capability. Naming the actual product avoids the gap between expectation and delivery. Our side-by-side comparison of ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini covers what those tools actually do well today.
"SI" already means other things
The abbreviation was not free. In science and engineering, SI is the International System of Units — SI units, as in metres and seconds. In Japan, one of the largest AI markets in Asia, "SI" is the standard shorthand for systems integration, and "SIer" is the everyday word for the vendors that build corporate systems. Writing "SI adoption" there reads as an IT outsourcing project, not as AI.
That collision is worth knowing before you put SI in a product name or a page title. We covered the overlapping meanings and how to write around them in our piece on why SI clashes with SIer and SI units.
Three pitfalls when you use the term
- Mixing the two definitions in one document. If your opening says "SI is the new name for AI" and a later section says "SI will surpass human intelligence," the document contradicts itself. Pick one meaning and keep it.
- Treating the rename as a global standard. It applies to US government documents. Whether other governments, companies or journals follow is unconfirmed as of September 23, 2026.
- Find-and-replacing "AI" with "SI" in contracts. Definitions clauses, cited statutes and regulatory references break when you swap the term mechanically. Any replacement has to be reviewed alongside the definitions clause.
If your team is working out how to talk about this internally, we also help companies adopt AI — from terminology and policy through to the tools themselves. We think it is genuinely useful, so please take a look if it is relevant to you.
The short answer
SI means either "today's AI, renamed" (Trump, from September 22, 2026) or "a hypothetical intellect that surpasses humans in virtually every domain" (AI research, from Bostrom). One test separates them: does it include ChatGPT? If you mean the research concept, write ASI and the ambiguity disappears.
FAQ
What does SI stand for?
Super Intelligence. Since September 22, 2026 it is also the term the US President said federal documents should use instead of artificial intelligence. Separately, SI is the International System of Units, and in Japan it commonly means systems integration.
Is Trump's SI the same as superintelligence in AI research?
No. Trump used SI as a new label for the AI that already exists. In AI research, superintelligence means a system that greatly exceeds human performance in virtually every domain, which has not been built.
Is ChatGPT a super intelligence?
Not under the research definition. Current models are not superintelligent and most researchers would say they have not reached artificial general intelligence either. Under Trump's usage, ChatGPT would be called SI.
What is the difference between ASI and SI?
ASI stands for artificial superintelligence and always refers to the research concept of a system beyond human capability. SI is ambiguous after the 2026 rename, so writing ASI is the clearer choice when you mean the research concept.
Did an executive order rename AI to super intelligence?
As of September 23, 2026 no executive order or implementation memo has been published. The change was announced in a UN General Assembly speech and applies to US government documents.