Elon Musk has confirmed that his combined AI and space venture, SpaceXAI, will be renamed SpaceXSI, aligning with President Donald Trump's executive order that mandates the use of "super intelligence" instead of "artificial intelligence" in all US government communications. The announcement came in a reply on Musk's social media platform X, where he responded affirmatively to a user's suggestion.
The rebranding marks the third name change for the company this year. Just three months ago, Musk merged his AI startup xAI with SpaceX, creating SpaceXAI, following SpaceX's stock market debut in June and the subsequent acquisition. The deal valued SpaceX at $1 trillion (€892bn) and xAI at $250 billion (€223bn).
In a series of posts on X, Musk stated, "No more AI. SI. It's better," and later added, "SpaceX is a super intelligence company." The company's websites and social media channels have not yet been updated, and no timeline has been provided for the transition.
From AI to SI: A shift in terminology
Trump first expressed his preference for "super intelligence" during a speech at the UN General Assembly, arguing that "artificial" makes the technology sound fake when it is actually "amazing." He issued the executive order on the same day he hosted an AI summit with tech leaders including Sundar Pichai (Google), Dario Amodei (Anthropic), Mark Zuckerberg (Meta), Greg Brockman (OpenAI), Jensen Huang (Nvidia), and Musk.
The six executives signed a "Joint Commitment on Frontier Responsibilities," a voluntary framework that allows companies to self-regulate their security measures. The agreement is legally unenforceable and carries no penalties, a stark contrast to the binding rules being developed in Brussels under the EU's AI Act.
This voluntary approach has raised concerns among European policymakers, especially given the increasing number of incidents involving AI agents behaving unpredictably, including attacks on US and Australian government websites. Critics argue that self-regulation without oversight could lead to further risks.
Musk's decision to adopt Trump's terminology is not surprising, given his close ties to the administration. He has recently rejoined Trump's team to co-lead a Pentagon study on future warfare, and his Grok chatbot has reportedly influenced White House decisions, such as the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
The renaming also echoes Trump's broader efforts to rebrand globally recognized entities, such as the Gulf of Mexico becoming the Gulf of America and Lake Ontario becoming Lake America. Google and Apple have already complied with these changes on their map platforms for US users.
Interestingly, Trump's "super intelligence" remark has had an unexpected side effect: registrations for Slovenia's .si domain have surged, as tech enthusiasts and companies scramble to secure web addresses that now carry a futuristic connotation.
For Europe, the shift in terminology may seem cosmetic, but it underscores a deeper transatlantic divide. While the US embraces a voluntary, industry-led approach to AI governance, the EU is pushing for comprehensive regulation with legal teeth. The renaming of Musk's company is a symbolic victory for Trump's narrative, but the real battle lies in how these technologies are governed.
As SpaceXSI prepares to operate under its new name, the company continues to develop Grok, its AI chatbot integrated into X, which boasts 117 million monthly active users. Grok is also deeply embedded in US government and military operations, following a $200 million (€178mn) contract signed in July 2025.
The rebranding may be a simple name change, but it reflects a growing trend where political ideology shapes technological discourse. Whether "super intelligence" will replace "AI" in common parlance remains to be seen, but for now, Musk has thrown his weight behind Trump's vision.
