The Death of ‘AI’: What the Super Intelligence Executive Order and the White House Accord Mean for Tech M&A

President Trump signed Executive Order 14434, which instructs the executive branch to replace ‘Artificial Intelligence’ and ‘AI’ with ‘Super Intelligence’ and ‘SI’ in official correspondence, public communications, websites, reports and policy documents. Agencies are directed to stop using the older terms going forward. Executive orders are published in the Federal Register (opens in a new tab).

On the same day, executives from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Meta, xAI and Nvidia signed the White House Accord on Super Intelligence, formally the Joint Commitment on Frontier Responsibilities.

The language is the visible part. The definition is the part to watch. If the new federal definition of SI ends up narrower or broader than today’s AI definition, it will shape which products fall under future procurement rules, export controls and reporting obligations.

There is also a clear communications strategy. ‘Super Intelligence’ frames the technology as a national capability to be managed and led, which fits the administration’s stated preference for industry self-regulation over binding rules.

1. 01Internal controlsMonitoring for frontier risks, including cybersecurity and biosecurity threats.
2. 02Internal oversight teamAn empowered team inside each company to review those controls.
3. 03Independent external auditorA third party to assess the controls and oversight.
4. 04Independent board committeeBoard-level review of safety reports.

The accord is described as morally binding but contains no formal enforcement mechanism, and the administration continues to oppose strict regulation. Even so, it gives the market something it did not have before: a shared, public description of what responsible oversight at a frontier lab looks like.

• Government-facing vendorsCompanies selling to US federal agencies should expect solicitations, statements of work and agency guidance to use SI terminology. Aligning product language early avoids friction in procurement.
• Contracts and definitionsDeal documents that define AI by reference to federal law should be reviewed once the new definition lands. Purchase agreements may need to cover both terms.
• A diligence benchmarkThe accord’s four layers are a ready-made checklist. Acquirers of AI businesses can ask how a target’s controls, oversight, audit and board reporting compare, and sellers who can answer clearly will stand out.
• Capital follows clarityClear federal positioning tends to support investment in domestic compute, chips and model infrastructure, the same layers covered in Inside the Agentic Stack and Buying the Grid.