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Elon Musk said Sunday, October 4, that SpaceX will rename its artificial-intelligence business SpaceXAI to SpaceXSI, aligning the unit’s name with President Donald Trump’s push for U.S. agencies to use “Super Intelligence” instead of “Artificial Intelligence.” Musk confirmed the proposed change in a reply on X, but gave no timetable or further details.
The distinction matters: Musk’s response referred to SpaceXAI, the company’s AI unit, not a stated renaming of SpaceX’s rocket and satellite business. Reuters reported that SpaceXAI’s X account had not changed its name as of publication and that the unit had not immediately responded to a request for comment.
A brief confirmation, with no transition date
The exchange began when an X user asked Musk whether the unit could be renamed SpaceXSI. Musk replied that the company would make the change. He also posted that there should be “No more AI” and that “SI” was better, according to reporting by Reuters.
Neither the reply nor the company’s reported response set out when a rebrand would take effect, whether it would apply to legal entities or only public-facing branding, or whether related products and services would also be renamed. The account’s unchanged name at the time of Reuters’ report was an indication that the transition had not yet appeared there.
White House order directs federal terminology change
The announcement followed an executive order signed by Trump on September 29, titled “Inaugurating the Era of Super Intelligence.” It directs the executive branch, to the maximum extent permitted by law, to use “Super Intelligence” and “SI” in place of “Artificial Intelligence” and “AI” in applicable settings.
The order does not simply establish a new technical meaning for the technology. It says the terms cover technologies within the existing statutory definition of artificial intelligence, and directs the White House science and technology adviser to submit proposed legislation within 60 days to establish a federal definition of “Super Intelligence” and “SI.” It also says the terminology shift does not require changes to previously issued regulations, contracts, grants or historical documents.
SpaceX’s AI business grew through xAI acquisition
SpaceX’s AI operations became part of the company after it acquired Musk’s AI startup xAI in February 2026. Reuters reported at the time that the deal brought together the rocket company and the maker of the Grok chatbot. SpaceX’s public filings have described an AI business that includes AI computing, Grok and the X platform.
The proposed name change comes after that corporate consolidation, but Musk’s short post did not explain whether SpaceXSI would be a new standalone entity, a brand for the existing AI business, or a change to how the business is presented within SpaceX. No financial terms, operational changes or effects on customers were announced alongside the rebrand statement.
What remains unclear
The available reports establish Musk’s intention to change the unit’s name, but not the implementation details. There is no confirmed effective date, announced filing or account update in the reporting, and SpaceX had not publicly described the scope of the change.
The next visible step would be an official company communication or update to the unit’s public branding. Until then, SpaceXAI remains the name used in the contemporaneous reports, while SpaceXSI is the name Musk said the company would adopt. The federal order separately sets a 60-day deadline for proposed legislative language, but that timetable concerns a government definition and does not prescribe a schedule for SpaceX’s rebrand.
