There is no one thing called "smart" so all of the people debating whether this guy is smart are missing the point.
People like this are "smart" in the sense that they have a beyond average capacity to keep track of complex systems in their head.
This person appears not to be "smart" in the sense of lacking the wisdom to understand what to do with the large volume of complexity they are able to hold in memory.
In my opinion, the second is much more valuable than the first for the average problem you have to solve on a project although sometimes you need people with the first type of intelligence. But these people are usually much more liability than asset.
There is no one thing called "smart" so all of the people debating whether this guy is smart are missing the point.
People like this are "smart" in the sense that they have a beyond average capacity to keep track of complex systems in their head.
This person appears not to be "smart" in the sense of lacking the wisdom to understand what to do with the large volume of complexity they are able to hold in memory.
In my opinion, the second is much more valuable than the first for the average problem you have to solve on a project although sometimes you need people with the first type of intelligence. But these people are usually much more liability than asset.