noun
Refers to shrewd, often underhanded intelligence used to deceive or manipulate. Typically negative in connotation.
彼は奸智に長けた政治家だ。
He is a politician skilled in cunning.
奸智を巡らせて相手を出し抜いた。
He outwitted his opponent by using his craftiness.
悪知恵 is more colloquial and refers to 'mischievous cleverness' or 'bad wisdom', often used for petty tricks, while 奸智 is more formal and implies deeper, more sinister cunning.
策略 is a neutral term for 'strategy' or 'tactics', which can be used in both positive and negative contexts, whereas 奸智 always carries a negative, deceitful nuance.
Compound of 奸 (wicked, cunning) and 智 (wisdom, intellect). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the combination has been used to denote 'crafty intelligence' in literary and formal contexts.