Status as of October 2026 · 7 sourced guides
Superintelligence: definition and meaning
Superintelligence is an intellect that far exceeds the best human minds in nearly every field, not in one narrow skill.
The standard definition comes from philosopher Nick Bostrom (1998 and 2014). The idea goes back to I. J. Good’s “ultraintelligent machine” of 1965.
No existing AI system meets that definition as of October 2026. The word is back in the news because AI companies now name superintelligence as a goal, and lawmakers have introduced bills to ban it. This site explains what the word means, where it came from, and how it is used, with a source for every claim.
- 7 sourced guides
- 36 glossary terms
- Sources linked in every guide
- No cookies, ads, or forms
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Start here The definition is at the top of this page. To see where superintelligence sits next to narrow AI, AGI, the intelligence explosion, and the singularity, open the ladder of terms.
In short Narrow AI does one kind of task. Artificial general intelligence (AGI) means roughly human-level ability across many tasks. Superintelligence means far beyond human ability across nearly all of them.
In short No two AI companies use “superintelligence” the same way. A company definition is a statement of intent, not a measurement.
In short Nick Bostrom’s 2014 book sorts superintelligence into three forms: speed (a human-like mind running much faster), collective (many minds working as one system) and quality (a mind that can do what humans cannot).
In short An intelligence explosion is the idea that an AI able to improve its own design could trigger a rapid chain of ever-smarter systems. I. J. Good proposed it in 1965.
In short Forecasts for human-level or superhuman AI range from the late 2020s to the next century. Much of the disagreement comes from different definitions rather than different evidence.
In short Bills to ban superintelligence were introduced in the US Congress and the UK House of Commons in September 2026. Neither had passed as of October 15, 2026.
The ladder of terms
From narrow AI to the singularity
Open a term to see its short definition and the guide that covers it.
01 Narrow AI One task
AI built to perform one task or a narrow set of tasks, such as playing chess or predicting protein structures. A narrow system can be superhuman at its task without being general. AGI vs superintelligence
02 Artificial general intelligence Roughly human level
AI that performs well across a wide range of tasks at roughly human level or better. There is no agreed definition; OpenAI’s Charter uses “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work.” AGI vs superintelligence
03 Intelligence explosion I. J. Good, 1965
The hypothesis that a machine able to design better machines would set off a rapid chain of ever more capable systems, leaving human intelligence far behind. I. J. Good proposed it in 1965. The intelligence explosion and the singularity
04 Superintelligence Far beyond, nearly every field
An intellect that far exceeds the best human minds across virtually all fields, not in one narrow skill. Nick Bostrom’s 2014 definition is “any intellect that greatly exceeds the cognitive performance of humans in virtually all domains of interest.” What is superintelligence?
05 Technological singularity Vinge, 1993
A hypothesized point after which technological change, usually driven by superhuman intelligence, becomes too fast to predict from before it. Vernor Vinge tied the idea to superhuman intelligence in 1993. The intelligence explosion and the singularity
Key moments
Where the word came from, and who uses it now
Each line links to the guide with the source.
- 1958 Idea Ulam Stanislaw Ulam recalls a conversation about accelerating technology that seemed to approach an “essential singularity” in human history
- 1965 Idea I. J. Good “Speculations Concerning the First Ultraintelligent Machine” describes an “intelligence explosion”
- 1993 Idea Vinge “The Coming Technological Singularity” is presented at a NASA-sponsored symposium
- 1998 Definition Bostrom “How Long Before Superintelligence?” gives the word a working definition
- 2014 Definition Bostrom Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies makes the term mainstream
- 2018 Definition OpenAI The Charter defines AGI as “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work”
- May 2023 Company OpenAI Describes superintelligence as “future AI systems dramatically more capable than even AGI”
- Nov 2023 Definition Google DeepMind “Levels of AGI” labels Level 5 general performance “Artificial Superintelligence (ASI)” and lists it as not yet achieved
- Jun 19, 2024 Company SSI Safe Superintelligence Inc. is announced by Ilya Sutskever, with Daniel Gross and Daniel Levy
- Jun 30, 2025 Company Meta Meta Superintelligence Labs is announced in an internal memo from Mark Zuckerberg
- Oct 22, 2025 Statement FLI The Future of Life Institute releases a one-sentence Statement on Superintelligence calling for a prohibition on its development
- Nov 6, 2025 Company Microsoft Microsoft AI announces the MAI Superintelligence Team in “Towards Humanist Superintelligence”
- Sep 8, 2026 Bill UK Alex Sobel introduces a bill in the House of Commons to prohibit artificial superintelligence
- Sep 23, 2026 Bill US Sanders introduces the Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act of 2026 in the Senate as S. 5493; Casar introduces it in the House on September 24 as H.R. 10538
Library
Guides
7 guides, from the original definitions to the current debate. Each one lists its sources and the date it was last checked.
What is superintelligence?
The standard definition, where it came from, and what it does not mean.
AGI vs superintelligence
Narrow AI, AGI and superintelligence compared, with each lab's definition of AGI.
How AI companies define superintelligence
Each major lab's own wording on superintelligence, with dates and links.
Types of superintelligence
Speed, collective and quality superintelligence, and the other main taxonomies.
The intelligence explosion and the singularity
Where the runaway-AI idea came from, and why critics doubt it.
Superintelligence timelines
What labs, surveys and forecasters have predicted, listed with dates and sources.
The superintelligence debate
The safety concern, the skeptics, the public statements and the proposed bans.
Glossary
Look up a term
36 terms, each with a link to its source.
Superintelligence, AGI, and AI: how are they different?
Artificial intelligence is the broad field. Most AI in use today is narrow: it does one kind of task, sometimes better than any person.
Artificial general intelligence (AGI) usually means roughly human-level ability across many kinds of tasks. Companies and researchers define it differently, and some definitions sit close to superintelligence.
Superintelligence, sometimes called artificial superintelligence or ASI, means far beyond human level across nearly all of them. The AGI vs superintelligence guide compares the definitions side by side.
What this site does not do
It does not forecast when superintelligence will arrive or argue that it will or should. When a guide reports a prediction, it says who made it and when, and it reports the people who disagree. The glossary defines 36 terms that come up in the debate.