>>54089805"Sapient" means something that has human level intellect and thought processes. Let's think about if Pokemon are sapient:
-They can create Superhumanly complex machinery (Beheeyem's UFO, Mewtwo's cloning system, Malamar's Time Machine).
-They have complex, abstract thoughts and motivations (Island of Giant Pokemon conversations, Braixen being sentimental about her stick, Latias being attracted to Ash).
-They understand language (Meowth, Zoroark, Beheeyem and Malamar again...many, many other examples for this).
And since Pokemon are depicted as a collective, this means these things can be extended to all Pokemon, including Magikarp.
