Trump directs US government to refer to AI as ‘Super Intelligence’

Meta description: Trump executive order replaces artificial intelligence with Super Intelligence in US policy documents, The Verge reports after Tuesday’s America.gov event.

Tags: Super Intelligence, Executive Order, America.gov, Donald Trump, US policy language

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President Donald Trump has signed a new executive order directing the US executive branch to stop using the phrase artificial intelligence in official policy websites, policy documents, and press releases, replacing it with Super Intelligence. The shift matters because federal language often shapes how agencies, contractors, researchers, and foreign partners describe technology programs; changing the label can alter the tone of American policy messaging even before any technical definition changes. The Verge reported the story after the Tuesday announcement connected to the launch of America.gov.

Background: A familiar term faces a new label

For years, artificial intelligence, often shortened to AI, has been the ordinary term used in government research programs, procurement rules, and public statements. It covers a broad field, from machine learning models to automation tools. The source report frames the new order in unusually stark terms: the executive branch is no longer acknowledging the existence of artificial intelligence. Instead, official communications will refer only to Super Intelligence.

That is a notable departure because policy documents usually need stable vocabulary. Terms in executive orders and agency guidance can affect how funding is described, how compliance is reviewed, and how foreign governments interpret American priorities. A move from “artificial intelligence” to “Super Intelligence” could signal a desire to emphasize capability rather than category, but the available source material does not describe a new legal definition for the replacement term.

Development: Tuesday’s executive order and the America.gov launch

The announcement was tied to an event earlier on Tuesday celebrating the launch of America.gov. At that event, President Donald Trump said, “The word super is the best word of all, and it's the simplest.” He also said Chinese President Xi Jinping, who visited the White House last week, “loves it” too.

Trump’s public rationale focused on rejection of the word artificial. “We don't want to hear artificial,” he said, adding that the technology is “very powerful” and “very brilliant.” The source quote then trails off with “It's going to mostly be …” which suggests the statement was truncated in the available text and should not be treated as a complete policy definition.

The original article carried a photograph credit to Carolyn Van Houten / The Washington Post via Getty Images, while The Verge provided the full account of the executive order and the remarks surrounding America.gov.

Latest progress: Symbolic language, practical uncertainty

At this stage, the clearest fact is a change in vocabulary for official communications. The order directs the US executive branch to use Super Intelligence in policy websites, policy documents, and press releases. It does not, based on the source material, announce a new technical program, a funding line, a regulatory test, or a formal definition of what counts as Super Intelligence.

The timing also places the change inside a broader messaging sequence: the Tuesday America.gov launch, the president’s rebranding of official technology language, and a reference to Xi Jinping’s White House visit last week. That combination suggests the move is partly political communication, aimed at reframing advanced systems in a more positive, capability-focused tone.

The current phase is therefore mostly symbolic and procedural: the term is being replaced in official text, while agencies, contractors, researchers, and international partners may continue using artificial intelligence in technical contexts unless later guidance says otherwise. The next detail to watch is whether the executive order text or follow-up documents define Super Intelligence, set a transition schedule for existing materials, or explain how the term will be used in procurement, research, and public statements.