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What is AGI? Definition of artificial general intelligence and difference with narrow AI
AGI (artificial general intelligence) refers to an AI system able to match or exceed humans at most cognitive tasks, not just one. There is neither a shared definition nor an accepted test to say it has been reached: each lab uses its own.
The term contrasts with so-called weak, or narrow, AI, specialised in one task (recognising an image, playing chess, sorting emails). The weak versus strong AI distinction comes from philosopher John Searle (1980), for whom a strong AI would really have a mind; AGI, by contrast, is defined by capabilities, with no claim about consciousness. Definitions differ between players. OpenAI's Charter (2018) speaks of “highly autonomous systems that outperform humans at most economically valuable work”. Google DeepMind uses an AI “at least as capable as humans at most cognitive tasks” and proposes a scale of levels crossing performance and generality (Morris et al., 2023). Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, wrote in October 2024 that he dislikes the term and speaks of “powerful AI”: smarter than a Nobel Prize winner across most fields. On timing, lab leaders point to short horizons: DeepMind wrote in April 2025 that AGI “could be here within the coming years”, and Dario Amodei mentioned 2026 at the earliest. Academic research is more cautious: in the AAAI survey published in March 2025 (475 respondents), 76% consider it “unlikely” or “very unlikely” that scaling up current approaches will be enough to reach AGI. The stakes are also contractual: the Microsoft-OpenAI agreement long made commercial rights depend on declaring AGI, before the clause was neutralised on 27 April 2026.
Concrete example
Illustrative case: in 2026, the board of a French mid-sized industrial company asks whether it should “wait for AGI” before investing in AI. The CEO presents three points. First, the tools available today (assistants, agents, reasoning models) are not AGI under any public definition, yet they already automate a measurable share of the company's administrative work (quotes, reminders, summaries). Second, dates announced by labs are not commitments and researchers are divided. Third, reversible choices (short contracts, structured data, in-house skills) remain useful whatever the scenario. The board approves an 18-month plan based on quantified use cases, with no assumption about AGI.
Comparison
| Narrow AI (weak) | General AI (AGI) | Superintelligence (ASI) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Definition | Specialised in one task or domain | Matches or exceeds humans at most cognitive tasks | Greatly exceeds humans in virtually all domains |
| Status at 30/09/2026 | In service everywhere | Not reached under any recognised definition; no shared test | Hypothetical |
| Examples | Spam filter, image recognition, current AI assistants | No proven example | None (fiction only) |
| Who talks about it | The whole industry | Labs (OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Anthropic), researchers | Philosophers (Bostrom), labs in their safety texts |
| For the company | Measurable use cases today | Something to monitor, not a planning assumption | Public debate topic, no operational effect |
FAQ
What is artificial general intelligence?
It is an AI system that would be able to match or exceed humans at most cognitive tasks, not only at one specialised task. No definition is shared by all: OpenAI, Google DeepMind and Anthropic each use their own.
What is the difference between weak AI and strong AI?
Weak, or narrow, AI is specialised in one task: it is all the AI in service today. Strong AI, a notion from philosopher John Searle (1980), refers to a machine that would really have a mind. AGI is defined by the breadth of capabilities, without settling the question of consciousness.
Does AGI already exist?
As of 30 September 2026, no lab or institution has established that a system meets a recognised definition of AGI. Current models perform very well on many tasks but remain uneven, and there is no test accepted by all.
What is an example of AGI?
There is no proven example. ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini are general-purpose models, but they do not meet any public definition of AGI. Frequently cited examples (HAL 9000, Samantha in “Her”) are fiction.
What is the difference between AGI and superintelligence?
AGI refers to a level comparable to humans at most tasks. Superintelligence (ASI), in the definition popularised by philosopher Nick Bostrom (2014), refers to an intellect that would greatly exceed humans in virtually all domains. Both remain hypothetical.
When will AGI arrive?
Nobody knows. Some lab leaders point to a few years (Google DeepMind in April 2025, Dario Amodei for whom 2026 was possible at the earliest). In the March 2025 AAAI survey, 76% of researchers consider it unlikely that scaling up current methods will be enough.
See also
Further reading
Sources
- OpenAI Charter, OpenAI, April 2018 (definition of AGI). https://openai.com/charter/
- Taking a responsible path to AGI, Google DeepMind, 2 April 2025. https://deepmind.google/discover/blog/taking-a-responsible-path-to-agi/
- Machines of Loving Grace, Dario Amodei, October 2024. https://www.darioamodei.com/essay/machines-of-loving-grace
- AAAI 2025 Presidential Panel on the Future of AI Research, AAAI, March 2025 (survey of 475 respondents). https://aaai.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/AAAI-2025-PresPanel-Report-FINAL.pdf