What this measures

The AI Value Realisation Index is a single score from 0 to 100. It measures how much of the AI value that large companies claim can be verified in what they disclose. It is an aggregate across the AI deployers in the S&P 500 and FTSE 100, meaning companies that use AI in their own business. It excludes the AI value chain, which is the chipmakers and the sellers of AI models, platforms and software, along with hybrids like Apple and Amazon. For those companies selling AI is the business, so whether they create value by using AI is a different question. Each company is scored on its own, and the index combines those scores. The score falls into four bands: Talking (0 to 20), Emerging (20 to 40), Proven (40 to 60), and Realised (60 to 100).

The terms

Ladder Level (0 to 5). How strong one piece of disclosed proof is. Level 0, no disclosed AI proof (the company may still mention AI). Level 1, a stated AI plan or goal - an ambition, target or planned investment, with no result yet; merely mentioning AI is not enough. Level 2, a live deployment with usage, adoption or spend to show for it, but no result. Level 3, the first real, quantified result. Level 4, a result tracked over time - a defined metric, such as cost or margin, that can be followed. Level 5, a broken-out, tracked result - AI value reported as its own KPI or P&L line. It is separated from the rest of the business and reported consistently, quarter after quarter, so an outsider can track the same figure over time. Aspirational claims and future targets sit at Level 1, and pilots are capped at Level 2, so neither counts as proof. Proof is drawn from earnings calls, 8-K releases, primary press and SEC filings, and the strongest evidence usually sits in calls and press rather than 10-Ks. Coverage is the S&P 500, updated quarterly, and the FTSE 100, updated semi-annually, each labelled by its reporting period.

Proven Value (0 to 100). A company's score. We take its best Ladder Level in each of three areas: cost, revenue and customer. We add the three Levels and scale the total to 100. Only Level 3 and above counts. A company has to prove value in more than one area to score highly. This is the only place the three areas are used.

Talk Score (0 to 1). How densely a company raises AI, across its SEC filings (10-K and 10-Q) and earnings calls. We count AI mentions relative to how much the company publishes, and how often AI comes up on its calls. We exclude risk-factor boilerplate, and theme and tag what remains. Those counts are put through a saturating curve that lands every company between 0 and 1. No AI talk scores 0. Heavy AI talk approaches 1, with diminishing returns near the top. The curve is fixed, so scores stay comparable across quarters even as AI language spreads. Talk Score is used only as a weight, in step 2 below.

Substantiation. The ratio of a company's evidenced claims against all AI claims. It is a companion figure. It is not part of the index and it is not a multiplier. It sets the size of each bubble on the Talk versus Proof chart and appears on the rankings tables.

How the index is built

Step 1. Score each company, using the Proven Value rule above.

Step 2. Combine company-level Proven Value scores into one aggregate number. Each company's Proven Value is weighted by its revenue multiplied by its Talk Score. A large company that raises AI constantly counts for more than a small, quiet one. We add up the weighted scores and divide by the total weight. This quarter the result is 13.5, in the Talking band.

Why you can trust it

Every company, filing, earnings call and press claim we read is in the underlying data. If an announcement seems to prove more, look the company up and see how its disclosure scored. If something is missing, tell us and we will weigh it next quarter.

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Index by edition

Method log

Every published move of the index and every method change that made it more accurate, on the record.