SI vs AI: What Changes for Businesses and Agencies

SI vs AI is now a practical question for anyone who deals with the US federal government. Under Executive Order 14434, signed September 29, 2026, executive branch agencies must use "Super Intelligence" and "SI" instead of "Artificial Intelligence" and "AI" in their communications and non-statutory documents. For businesses, the short answer is that very little changes legally: existing laws, regulations, contracts and grants keep their wording and meaning, and the order does not apply to private companies. What changes is the vocabulary you will see in new federal material.

This guide sets out what the order requires of agencies, what it leaves alone, the open questions, and a checklist for organizations.

SI vs AI: what the order actually requires

The order has four operative points.

1. New wording for agencies. "To the maximum extent permitted by law," executive departments and agencies "shall use 'Super Intelligence' and 'SI' in place of 'Artificial Intelligence' and 'AI' in official correspondence, public communications, websites, reports, policy documents, and other non-statutory documents within the executive branch."
2. No rewriting of the past. "Nothing in this section requires the alteration of previously issued regulations, Presidential actions, contracts, grants, or other historical documents."
3. Same legal meaning. SI means the technologies covered by the statutory definition of artificial intelligence in 15 U.S.C. 9401(3), unless a later presidential action consistent with law or an Act of Congress changes it.
4. A proposal for Congress. Within 60 days, the Assistant to the President for Science and Technology must propose legislative language for a federal definition of SI, including any conforming amendments to laws that mention "artificial intelligence."

The order also states that it does not create any enforceable right or benefit. It was published in the Federal Register on October 2, 2026.

What changes and what stays the same

Read aloud, that table says: new federal communications switch to SI, while statutes, earlier regulations, existing contracts and grants, companies, and state and local governments are not required to change anything, and the legal meaning stays the same until Congress acts.

What it means for federal agencies

For agencies, the change is mostly editorial but wide. Communications teams, web managers and report authors need to use SI in new non-statutory material. Three limits shape how far that goes.

• "To the maximum extent permitted by law." Where a statute requires specific wording, the statutory wording still governs. That is why the order separates "non-statutory documents" from laws themselves.
• Historical records stay as they are. Agencies are not asked to rewrite archives, earlier rules or past presidential documents.
• Agency authority is untouched. Like most executive orders, it says nothing in it impairs the legal authority of an agency or the budget functions of the Office of Management and Budget.

The first examples are already public. Executive Order 14432, signed the same day to create America.gov, uses the phrase "super intelligence used in connection with America.gov." The Genesis Mission, the federal AI-for-science effort explained in our Genesis Mission guide, is now described by the White House as "a national effort to harness Super Intelligence."

What it means for businesses and contractors

For most companies, nothing has to change. The order is addressed to the executive branch. You can keep calling your product AI, and you do not need to rename an "AI policy," an "AI officer" or an AI product line.

Where you will notice the change:

• New solicitations and agency guidance. Expect new federal documents to say SI. Because SI legally means the same thing as AI, a requirement about "SI systems" covers the same technology as an earlier requirement about "AI systems," unless a document defines the term differently.
• Existing contracts and grants. These are not altered by the order. Their AI wording stays as written.
• Search and monitoring. Alerts, keyword searches and compliance trackers that look only for "artificial intelligence" will miss new material. Add "Super Intelligence" and "SI."
• Responses to agencies. Nothing in the order requires outside parties to adopt the term. Mirroring an agency's own wording in a response is a matter of style, not law.

Companies that build frontier models are also affected by other federal actions that still use "AI," such as Executive Order 14409 of June 2026 on AI security, which directed agencies to design a voluntary framework for developers to give the government access to the most cyber-capable models for up to 30 days before releasing them to other trusted partners. Our SI timeline lists these orders by date, and our National AI Policy Framework guide covers the proposed national law that would preempt many state AI rules.

Open questions the order does not answer

These are not answered in the order's text, so treat them as open:

• Job titles and councils. Earlier orders refer to bodies such as the Chief AI Officer Council. EO 14434 does not say whether existing titles or council names established by earlier documents will be renamed.
• The new legal definition. The proposal due around November 28, 2026 may recommend changing, expanding or replacing the statutory AI definition. Until Congress acts, the existing definition applies.
• How agencies interpret "applicable setting." The order says the executive branch "will not acknowledge" AI terminology in "any applicable setting," without listing those settings.

A practical checklist

1. Map SI to AI in your compliance glossary. Note that, under EO 14434 section 3, SI has the same meaning as the statutory AI definition.
2. Update searches and alerts. Search the Federal Register and agency sites for both terms. AI research assistants such as Perplexity can help find coverage, but always confirm against the official document.
3. Leave existing contracts alone. The order does not change them.
4. Watch for the definition proposal. Track the science adviser's 60-day proposal and any bill that follows.
5. Brief staff who use AI tools. Internal tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Claude and Gemini are unaffected; this is about federal wording, not about which products you may use.

Pros and cons of the new terminology for organizations

Helpful

• Clear rule: SI in new federal material means the same as AI.
• No forced changes to contracts, grants or earlier regulations.
• Signals federal priority on the technology.

Harder

• Two vocabularies to track during a transition period.
• Possible confusion with the research meaning of superintelligence; see what SI means.
• A future legal definition could differ from today's, so watch for the proposal.

Who should read this

• Federal contractors and grant applicants.
• Compliance, legal and policy teams that monitor federal guidance.
• Agency communications and web staff.
• Journalists and researchers who search federal records.

For a full walk-through of the order itself, see our superintelligence executive order guide.

FAQ

What is the difference between SI and AI?

In US federal usage, none in legal meaning. Executive Order 14434 tells agencies to say Super Intelligence, or SI, instead of artificial intelligence, or AI, and defines SI using the existing statutory definition of artificial intelligence.

Do businesses have to use the term SI?

No. The order applies to the federal executive branch. Companies, including federal contractors, are not required to rename products, policies or job titles.

Does EO 14434 change existing federal contracts?

No. The order says nothing in it requires altering previously issued regulations, presidential actions, contracts, grants or other historical documents.

Will laws that say "artificial intelligence" be changed?

Not by the order itself. It asks the President's science and technology adviser to propose legislative language, including possible conforming amendments, within 60 days. Only Congress can amend those laws.

Where can I read the official text?

The order is on WhiteHouse.gov and was published in the Federal Register on October 2, 2026, as document 2026-20321, at 91 FR 63129.