{
  "id": 15625871,
  "title": "Why the ugly history of IQ testing matters for AI and education",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/19/why-the-ugly-history-of-iq-testing-matters-for-ai-and-education",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-10-19T16:40:13.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Phys.org",
    "slug": "phys-org",
    "url": "https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ugly-history-iq-ai.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The recent discussions surrounding artificial general intelligence, or AGI, have brought to light the potential for AI to surpass human intelligence. This has caused concern among high-profile figures such as OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who has suggested that today's children will never be more intelligent than AI in terms of raw IQ. Similar sentiments have been voiced by U.S. President Donald Trump.\n\nWhen we consider the history of intelligence testing, it becomes clear that this concept is far from a simple biological fact. In the early 20th century, intelligence and IQ were constructed by universities and academic disciplines to support racist and eugenic ideologies. For example, Chinese and Japanese Canadian students were tested in the 1920s by researchers at the University of Toronto, under the guise of confirming long-standing racist notions of Anglo-white superiority and Asian inferiority.\n\nThese eugenic ideas about intelligence were deeply influenced by residential schools and colonial legacies. Kenneth E. Kidd, who later founded the Indian-Eskimo Studies program at Trent University, administered IQ tests at the Mohawk Institute in the 1930s. This testing led to two published books that advanced racist ideas about intelligence and informed Department of Indian Affairs policy across Canada's residential schools.\n\nThe use of IQ testing in universities and academic disciplines has also shaped the reliance on testing, exams, and grading. In response to AI cheating, some educational institutions are considering alternative forms of assessment, such as handwritten or oral exams, which raise concerns about ableism. Historically, intelligence testing was used to exclude certain groups from opportunities, and this trend could continue with the advent of AI.\n\nAs we reflect on the history of IQ testing, we must question the value placed on intelligence as a determinant of success. Today's obsession with standardizing education and overemphasis on grading may have made our work too easy to automate. Educators should focus on fostering collaboration, critical thinking, and meaningful connections between students. This shift in focus could help ensure that the integration of AI in education does not replicate historical and political projects that devalue human beings based on abstract or fabricated concepts of intelligence.",
  "summary": "OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has recently been discussing \"artificial general intelligence\" that matches or surpasses human capabilities. This is from the same person who has said children born today (including his own) will \"never be more intelligent than AI, from a 'raw IQ'\" (intelligence quotient) perspective.",
  "key_points": [
    "History of IQ testing rooted in racism and eugenics",
    "IQ testing influenced residential schools and colonial legacies",
    "AI integration may replicate historical intelligence devaluation"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}