STARBASE, United States — Elon Musk says SpaceX’s artificial intelligence business will be renamed SpaceXSI, adopting President Donald Trump’s new preferred term, “super intelligence,” in place of artificial intelligence.
Musk confirmed the planned change on Sunday, October 4, 2026, after an X user suggested replacing the “AI” in SpaceXAI with “SI.”
“Yes, we will make that change,” Musk replied on X.
SpaceX is a super intelligence company
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 4, 2026
The SpaceX chief executive gave no timetable for the rebranding and did not provide details about whether it would extend beyond the unit’s name to its products or corporate structure.
At the time the announcement was reported, the SpaceXAI account on X had not changed its name.
Musk Adopts Trump’s New Terminology
Musk’s announcement comes less than a week after Trump formally directed the federal government to replace the terms “artificial intelligence” and “AI” with “Super Intelligence” and “SI.”
Trump signed Executive Order 14434 on September 29, requiring executive departments and agencies, where legally permitted, to adopt the new terminology in official communications, websites, reports, and non-statutory policy documents.
The order does not require private companies to adopt the terminology.
For purposes of implementing the directive, it also does not initially create a separate technical definition of super intelligence.
Instead, the order says “Super Intelligence” and “SI” are to cover the same technologies and systems included under the existing federal statutory definition of artificial intelligence.
The White House said the change was intended to reflect what the administration considers the expanding capabilities of modern systems rather than merely describing them as artificial.
Trump had publicly introduced the terminology a week earlier during his address to the United Nations General Assembly, referring to artificial intelligence as “hereinafter officially called ‘Super Intelligence.’”
Musk is among the first major technology executives to signal that a company name will be changed to reflect the administration’s terminology.
Eric Lee/The New York Times
Another Name Change for Musk’s AI Business
SpaceXAI grew out of xAI, the artificial intelligence company Musk founded in 2023 to develop products including the Grok chatbot.
SpaceX acquired xAI on February 2, bringing Musk’s rocket, satellite, social-media, and artificial-intelligence businesses more closely together.
SpaceX’s regulatory filings show that xAI became a wholly owned subsidiary of the company following the transaction.
The AI operation subsequently became known as SpaceXAI.
The proposed SpaceXSI name would therefore mark another change in the identity of Musk’s AI business within months of its combination with SpaceX.
Reuters reported that SpaceXAI did not immediately respond to a request for further details about the planned change.
Federal Government Moves Away From ‘AI’
Trump’s terminology change has already begun appearing across his administration.
The executive order directs federal agencies to use SI instead of AI in new public communications and policy material, although previously issued regulations, contracts, grants, and presidential actions do not have to be rewritten.
The administration has also established a Super Intelligence Force to coordinate federal policy in the field and has begun using the terminology for government technology programmes.
Trump has argued that the word “artificial” makes the technology sound less substantial than it is. His executive order says the administration views “Super Intelligence” as a better description of systems that increasingly perform tasks across science, medicine, industry, and other fields.
Whether the terminology gains broader acceptance outside the federal government remains separate from the executive order itself.
Musk, however, has now indicated that his own AI operation will follow the change.
For the moment, SpaceXAI remains the name appearing publicly. Musk has not said when SpaceXSI will replace it.
