It is not a composite number synthesised from proxy metrics. It is the real, logged answer four AI models give when asked the kind of question an actual buyer would type, cross-checked against what is verifiably true about the business, then scored on whether the business was mentioned at all, mentioned accurately, and mentioned ahead of competitors.
Why it exists as its own check
A business can rank well on Google and still be invisible to AI models, because the two systems retrieve and cite information differently. We tested this directly across 15 real UK firms in four unrelated sectors, accountancy, law, fintech, and coaching, and found the same pattern every time: one firm dominated AI mentions per sector while several other established, credible businesses never appeared once. Being real and being good at the work is not the same as showing up when someone asks an AI which firm to hire.