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Wednesday, 14 October 2026dailybeirut.com
AI
Melania Trump renamed her student AI competition the Presidential Super Intelligence Challenge after President Trump signed an executive order rebranding the technology.
The K-12 artificial intelligence competition launched by Melania Trump has been officially renamed following a directive from the White House. The First Lady announced that the event is now titled the Presidential Super Intelligence (SI) Challenge, aligning with terminology preferred by President Donald Trump.
This shift in nomenclature follows an executive order signed by President Trump in September, which formally rebranded "artificial intelligence" as "super intelligence." Politico reported that the administration stated the move was intended to emphasize the rapid development of the sector. However, the decision drew scrutiny from various lawmakers who questioned the necessity of the change.
Earlier, on October 8, the President reinforced this preference through a post on Truth Social. He declared that individuals continuing to use the term "artificial intelligence" would be automatically added to his list of enemies. Instead, he instructed supporters to adopt the phrase "super intelligence" when referring to the technology.
According to a new White House briefing, Melania Trump framed the renaming as part of a broader strategic vision. She stated, “America’s future security, prosperity, and global leadership depend on our next generation. Building on last year’s success, the 2027 Presidential Super Intelligence Challenge will empower our children to lead the world.”
The First Lady elaborated that the contest serves as a mechanism to prepare students for expertise in what she described as the “most transformative technology of our time.” Additionally, participants in the newly named challenge will have the opportunity to receive her “First Lady Seal of SI Readiness.”
Melania Trump originally unveiled the student challenge in August 2025, shortly after the President signed the initial executive order related to AI policy. During its inaugural year, the competition attracted more than 20,000 students across the country.
Reuters previously noted that the Justice Department had also directed its staff to replace references to artificial intelligence with the term super intelligence, further cementing the administration's linguistic pivot.
