.si is the country-code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Slovenia, managed by Registry SI. Until recently it was a quiet, regional extension. That changed when President Trump signed an executive order requiring government agencies to refer to “artificial intelligence” as “super intelligence,” abbreviated “SI.”
The order argues that today’s frontier systems do more than imitate or automate pieces of human intelligence, and that they represent a new category of super intelligence. Registrants immediately noticed that .si matches the new abbreviation.
There is also a coincidence: First Lady Melania Trump is from Slovenia.
The Numbers: How Big Is the .si Surge?
| Metric | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Increase in .si registrations, September 2026 | 2,199% | Registry SI |
| New .si addresses on Sept. 30 (day after the order) | ~11,000 | Registry SI |
| New .si registrations in a recent 24-hour window | ~13,000 | Registry SI |
| Hostinger .si registrations, Sept. 30 | ~4,300 | Hostinger |
| Hostinger .si registrations, Oct. 1 | ~5,400 | Hostinger |
| Share of Hostinger’s .si registrations since Sept. 23 that came in the last two days | >75% | Hostinger |
| Share of Hostinger .si domains explicitly AI-related | ~3% | Hostinger |
| Hostinger buyers from the U.S. and India | >50% | Hostinger |
| Typical price on Hostinger, .si vs .ai | ~$12/yr vs ~$90/yr | Hostinger |
How to read these figures: A 2,199% rise sounds enormous, but percentage growth depends on the starting base. .si was a small registry, so the jump reflects a quiet market suddenly getting attention. The raw daily counts, in the thousands, are the more useful gauge of real demand.
Who Is Buying .si Domains, and Why?
1. Defensive brand protection
Kim Than, CEO of Genius PR, which works with AI and crypto founders, bought the .si version of his company’s name “to protect the brand.” The logic is cheap insurance: at about $12 a year, it costs little to avoid a potentially expensive purchase later.
2. Speculation and resale
Hostinger says speculation is clearly part of the picture, with buyers possibly planning to resell. Than describes domains as “digital collectibles,” says he may resell some, and notes that domains can be tokenized and traded on-chain, though he wasn’t sure .si is supported.
A founder also told the reporter that .si domains were reselling for over a million dollars. That is an unverified secondhand claim, and no marketplace data in the reporting backs it up. Treat it as rumor, not market price.
3. Genuine AI branding (a small slice)
Only about 3% of .si domains on Hostinger are explicitly AI-related. Most are “unclassified,” meaning the names don’t fit a clear category. That suggests this wave is driven more by hype and optionality than by AI companies migrating to .si.
.si vs .ai: Is This the Next Anguilla Moment?
The comparison is natural. When the AI boom began, .ai, the ccTLD for the British Overseas Territory of Anguilla, saw demand spike and generated millions of dollars for the island.
Klaudijus Januitis, head of domains at Hostinger, expects .si demand to keep growing but doesn’t see it replacing .ai soon. His view is that .si is a more available, more affordable second option.
| Factor | .ai (Anguilla) | .si (Slovenia) |
|---|---|---|
| Typical retail price | ~$90/year | ~$12/year |
| Commitment | Two-year minimum | Standard terms |
| Where the money goes | Directly to the government | To the registry (Registry SI) |
| Economic impact | A “second economy” for Anguilla | “A nice bonus” for Slovenia |
| Brand association | Matches “AI,” widely recognized | Matches “SI,” an official label in one government |
Januitis put it this way: “For Anguilla, .ai became a second economy. For Slovenia, .si is a nice bonus.”
Our Analysis: Five Things the Headlines Miss
1. A government label is not a market standard
The executive order directs federal agencies to use “SI.” It does not bind private companies, investors, researchers, or other countries. The tech industry, academic literature, and global media still say “AI.” For .si to become a durable brand signal, the term “SI” would have to spread well beyond government communications, and that is far from certain.
2. The surge looks event-driven, not trend-driven
Hostinger reports that over three-quarters of its .si registrations since September 23 happened in the last two days. That is the profile of a news-driven spike. Spikes like this often fade once the novelty wears off, unless real product adoption follows.
3. Low prices cut both ways
The low cost explains the rush, because speculation is cheap. But it also undermines scarcity. If thousands of people can register similar names for $12, few of those names will resell for much. The “million-dollar” resale stories, if any are true, are likely isolated outliers.
4. Weak institutional backing compared with .ai
Anguilla gets government revenue and a strong incentive to promote .ai. .si’s economics don’t create the same push. That affects how long the registry is likely to invest in the extension as a global brand.
5. Practical risks for businesses
Before building on a .si domain, founders should consider:
- Brand clarity: will customers recognize .si as an AI signal?
- Search geotargeting: ccTLDs are often treated as location signals by search engines. Whether .si is treated as geographic or generic is worth verifying in Google’s documentation before committing.
- Policy dependency: registry rules, pricing, and eligibility can change.
- Trademark exposure: registering a domain doesn’t confer brand rights, and a rush of registrations invites disputes.
- Reputation risk: if the order is revised or reversed, the “SI” narrative could lose steam quickly.
What Should Founders and Investors Do?
For founders:
- If your brand is already established, register your .si name defensively. It’s inexpensive.
- Don’t migrate your primary domain on the strength of this news alone.
- Keep your main brand on .com, .ai, or another established extension.
For investors and domain traders:
- Treat .si as a high-risk speculative bet.
- Focus on genuinely scarce, brandable names rather than bulk registrations.
- Remember that resale prices in these rushes cluster at the very top. Most names sell for little or nothing.
For journalists and analysts:
- Verify resale price claims against marketplace sales data before repeating them.
- Contextualize percentage jumps with raw volumes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the .si domain?
.si is the country-code top-level domain for Slovenia, administered by Registry SI.
Why are .si registrations increasing?
Demand rose after President Trump signed an executive order requiring government agencies to use “SI” (super intelligence) in place of “AI.” The abbreviation matches the .si extension.
How much did .si registrations increase?
Registry SI reported a 2,199% increase in September 2026. It recorded about 11,000 new addresses on September 30 and nearly 13,000 in a recent 24-hour period. The Registry was cautious about attributing the entire rise to the executive order.
How much does a .si domain cost compared with .ai?
On Hostinger, .si costs about $12 per year, while .ai costs about $90 per year and requires a two-year commitment.
Will .si replace .ai?
Unlikely in the near term. Hostinger’s head of domains expects continued .si growth but sees it as a cheaper, more available alternative rather than a replacement.
Will Slovenia profit the way Anguilla did from .ai?
Probably not to the same degree. .si fees go to the registry rather than directly to the national treasury, and the price is a fraction of .ai’s.
Are .si domains selling for over a million dollars?
One founder claimed this to the reporter, but it is unverified. No marketplace data was provided to support it.
Should my startup buy a .si domain?
A defensive registration of your brand name is cheap and low-risk. Moving your main site to .si based on this news is not advisable.
Bottom Line
The .si surge is a vivid example of how quickly a policy announcement can move an obscure corner of the internet. The numbers are real, but the story rests on a label used by one government, a low price that encourages speculation, and a wave of buyers who mostly aren’t building AI products. Slovenia gets a bonus, domain buyers get a gamble, and the AI industry gets a reminder that naming conventions are set by markets, not decrees.