Really? I don't remember this, I usually play RTS in maximum difficulty (I remember SC2 on Brutal had some challenging scenarios, as it should be), and still I thought Normal in 0 A.D. wasn't the usual Normal. I doubt it's my imagination, newbies have mentioned this plenty of times, and even the game itself states "the default AI level is quite challenging for new players", which shouldn't be necessary to state if it was a normal Normal.
I remember the "Medium" Age of Kings AI.
Let's just say that it wasn't medium at all, more of a "git gud" test of your skills. I see our "Medium" AI in the same light.