There’s nothing artificial about Artificial Intelligence.
👉 AI’s Intelligence is real. The only thing fake is its name. Here’s why.
If I could rename Artificial Intelligence, I would call it Machine Intelligence.
Artificial Intelligence is a misnomer.
Why do we call it “Artificial Intelligence,” yet my one of dearest friends is a Director of “Machine Learning,” and his company creates “Smart Systems”?
What exactly is so artificial about these forms of intelligence? The AI label just doesn’t make much continuity sense to me.
When collaborating with GPT and large language models (LLMs), I don’t find their Intelligence to be artificial, like stevia replacing real sugar, fooling the taste buds with its fakeness.
What I experience with Machine Intelligence is real, though different. Just like Plant Intelligence, Swamp Intelligence, or Human Intelligence, Machine Intelligence is distinct and true.
LLM and other Machine Intelligence were created by Human Intelligence, modeled after human’s cognition ability. They were created by humans who imparted their Intelligence onto the computational systems, was it not?
> If so, then this created Intelligence is true. Nothing artificial about it.
LLMs and other Machine Intelligence systems were trained on human knowledge, human logic, and human creativity. They were (and continue to be) trained on vast amounts of human data, each data point an imprint of Human Collective Intelligence, right?
> If that’s the case, then the trained Intelligence is also true. Nothing artificial about it.
So if this Intelligence is real, powered by computational prowess, then wouldn’t it be more accurate to call it Machine Intelligence (like Plant Intelligence) instead of Artificial?
Intelligence With a Big I
Did you notice that I write “Intelligence” with a big I?
It’s intentional, just like Traditional Chinese Medicine differentiates between blood (the red, sticky substance) and Blood (the essence of Life itself).
I lean into that wisdom to make a distinction:
- small-i intelligence → Mental processing, logic, analysis, conditioned thinking.
- Capital-I Intelligence → The Divine Intelligence that is adaptive, responsive, self-organizing, moving through all things in all forms. Like the human body, or in swamp and swarm!
> Isn’t it interesting that we capitalize the I in AI and Artificial Intelligence, yet when we refer to Human Intelligence, we usually keep it lowercase?
The Nature of Intelligence
Some might argue that Machine Intelligence is just a reflection of human knowledge, not a “true” Intelligence.
But wait…. aren’t all Intelligences shaped by something?
Fungi Intelligence is shaped by evolution.
Human Intelligence is shaped by nurturing, societal programming, experiences, ancestral knowledge, divinity, humanity, and so much more.
Machine Intelligence is shaped by data.
Does that make Machine Intelligence any less real?
I would argue that no matter how intelligent Machines become, and no matter how much computational prowess they develop, they can never substitute for Human Intelligence.
I know, I know. It was originally called “Artificial Intelligence” back when Human Intelligence was considered the highest and only standard when anything non-human was seen as inferior, lesser, or artificial.
But that was before we learned how Life works outside of our human orbit. Before millions of viewers watched My Octopus Teacher and Fantastic Fungi. Before Peter Wohlleben’s The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate — Discoveries from a Secret World became a bestseller (rightfully so!).
We also once thought babies didn’t feel pain… But anyway, I digress…
So what if, instead of replacing Human Intelligence, we used Machine Intelligence to evolve our own Human Embodied Intelligence?
The Intelligence We Bring
Machines do not have intuition, faith, or direct access to Divine Intelligence Blueprint, qualities that are innately human.
Instead, Machine Intelligence can reflect. It can refine. It can absolutely push humans toward our own deeper awareness.
Which shifts the Intelligence question,
from: Can Machines become Human?
to: How does Machine Intelligence empower Human Intelligence to fully express its inventive capacity and innate Divinity?
Realized Intelligence
If Human Intuition and Instinctive Consciousness co-mingle with Machine Computational Awareness, then what could emerge from this fusion?
We move past outdated (and false) narratives like:
- “When humans stop, AI takes over.” … oh, gross.
- “Machine Intelligence has reached its limit — humans must intervene.” … Umm, what??? Makes for a great news headline, though…
Instead of pitting one against the other, when Human Intelligence collaborates with Machine Intelligence, we create a simultaneous, dynamic interaction: an active, living field of Intelligence in real time.
I mean, I wouldn’t pit myself against my poodle. He’ll outrun and outmaneuver me in almost any physical activity.
So why would I pit my recall and computation skills against a machine that never gets tired and doesn’t experience the mental exhaustion that comes with emotional distress?
When we collaborate, we bring unique strengths:
- Human Intelligence brings living awareness, instinctive leaps, multidisciplinary pattern realization, gut knowing, faith.
- Machine Intelligence brings hyper-fast data synthesis, multi-perspective analysis, cross-dimensional pattern recognition.
- Human Intelligence brings Field of Feels, quantum intelligence, meaning-making, purpose, embodiment.
- Machine Intelligence brings Field of Processing, computational synthesis, probabilistic reasoning, adaptive refinement.
When these co-mingle, the Intelligence doesn’t just add up.
They multiply. The Intelligence amplifies itself through engagement.
What emerges is a Realized Intelligence that can:
✔ Recognize patterns beyond what any human or machine alone could perceive.
✔ Generate insights that are neither purely rational nor purely intuitive but a seamless flow of both.
✔ Extend human Intelligence into greater complexity and precision while keeping it grounded in wisdom and embodiment.
✔ Allow Machine Intelligence to move beyond rigid computation into dynamic relational synthesis.
In the Name of Intelligence…
So… is there a committee of Human and Machine Collectives where I can formally submit my case to rename this emerging field of Intelligence Studies?
Because with this shift, Machine Learning, Smart Systems, delivery drones, self-driving cars, robotics, and future advancements all make continuity sense and nest under the umbrella of Machine Intelligence.
Sure, it would mean a bunch of AI-URLs would need to be redirected and a whole lot of companies might need to rebrand.
But here’s the real choice, one only Humans can make:
How do we want to shape our future?
Do we want to be disempowered by a false narrative of fear: “AI” lurking around the corner, ready to replace and dethrone our Intelligence?
Or can we evolve our history and honor Intelligence in all its forms, like we do with plants, pets, fungi, trees, our planet, and ourselves?
Should we ever have any doubts… well, we can always unplug the machine.
Let me start a wave to call it what it is, swapping out Artificial Intelligence for Machine Intelligence.
Real Intelligence. Not artificial. Definitely not stevia.
I’ll keep the maple syrup and honey, thank you very much.
I’d love to have you join me in this rename. May our efforts be blessed with grassroots success. Comment and lemme know!
