US Treasury pushes global partners to rename AI as 'super intelligence'

BANGKOK, Oct 15 : The United States wants its global partners to rename artificial intelligence as "super intelligence," convinced that the new moniker better reflects the emerging technology, a top US Treasury official told Reuters in an interview on Thursday.

Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs Erin Browne said Washington was in negotiations with other shareholders of the International Monetary Fund about using the new term in a statement being drafted by the fund's steering committee, the International Monetary and Financial Committee.

US President Donald Trump last month directed US government agencies to use the words "super intelligence" instead of "artificial intelligence" when ​referring to the technology.

Browne said the United States, which holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 major economies, wanted the change to take hold internationally as well. 

"President Trump has been really clear on this, and he's, you know, using the term SI, and I think it's a clear priority for the US to use that term, and we think that more appropriately encapsulates the technology at hand," Browne said.

She declined to comment on whether Washington would refuse to sign off on the statement unless the switch was made.

"We're still in the middle of negotiations on that statement, so I'm not going to, you know, sort of run ahead of that," she said.

A source familiar with the matter said US officials had suggested during meetings on the IMFC statement that they would insist on the new language, raising eyebrows among some other IMFC members.

If Washington withholds its support for a consensus statement, the current IMFC chair, Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, could still issue a so-called chair's statement summarizing the views of the members.

One possibility might involve skipping a mention of SI or AI and focusing on "new technology" instead, the source said.

The IMFC will hold a news conference and release any agreed statement led by Al-Jadaan and IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Saturday.

"We see this as a driving force behind American growth and global growth," Browne said.

"Many countries are looking to the US to set the standards, as well as to set the path forward for SI development and how that can really enhance and boost growth and productivity on a global basis."