US Census Bureau's business survey now calls AI "Super Intelligence"; first results are scheduled for Nov 5

The Business Trends and Outlook Survey (BTOS) is a biweekly Census Bureau survey of US businesses. From the Oct 19, 2026 collection, its core question asks whether the business used "Super Intelligence or SI (formerly referred to as Artificial Intelligence or AI) in any of its business functions". The BTOS about page says the wording changed "due to Executive Order 14434". The questionnaire PDF still gives the old examples, such as machine learning and voice recognition, while the published data tables print new ones, such as "SI-powered data analysis". This is the second wording break in a year. On Nov 17, 2025 "in producing goods or services" became "in any of its business functions", and the Bureau started a new time series after a level shift in the answers. The last wave asked with the AI wording (collected Oct 5 to 18, published Oct 22) shows 24.6% of businesses using it, and 43.6% of those with 250 or more employees. The 250-plus figure moves a lot between waves. One wave earlier it was 36.5%. The published tables already show those answers under the SI label. The Bureau's own release table lists Nov 5 as the publication date for the Oct 19 to Nov 1 collection, the first under the new wording. Why it matters: Charts of US business AI adoption, including Simon Willison's chart by company size, are built on this survey. Changing the name in a question can move the answers even when nothing changed inside the companies, and the 2025 rewording came with a level shift big enough that the Bureau restarted the series. Now the question says "Super Intelligence", and two official Census documents print different examples for the same question. Any chart that draws one line across these dates mixes answers to different questions.

Try this: Before you cite a US AI adoption number, check the source wave and which BTOS wording produced it: before Nov 17, 2025, from then until Oct 18, 2026, or from Oct 19, 2026. When the release scheduled for Nov 5 comes out, compare it with the 24.6% from the last AI-wording wave before you call any change a trend.