The lens
How we score
AI is everywhere. Moats are not. We isolate one lens — who is turning intelligence into a durable operating advantage — then score it. Three pillars, 0–5 each, total 0–15. The hard fence on every pillar is 2 vs 3.
Weight — the important split
2 = operational hygiene (same business, run cleaner). 3 = could move business model or market position. If every competitor bought the same Copilot seats, would this company still look different? If no → 2.
Reach
How much of the chain has operating use. One interesting place can be a 3 - especially how they go to market. Breadth still matters for a 4 or 5.
Proof
Did it land. 2 = named in a 10-K or earnings, tied to a function. 3 = you can see it running. 5 is a KPI on the intelligence function — not robot or device volume.
What a 3 (and a 9) means
A 3 or above on a pillar means we found a genuine project and a result we can point to — in the product, the operations, R&D, or how they go to market. 2 = they are talking about it. 1 = mentioned, still to be determined. 0 = nothing. A total of 9 (three 3s) means they are doing something worth a closer look - it might move the needle for shareholders. One place on the chain is enough; how they go to market is more interesting than ops or sales noise. We do not hand out 4s for robot placements or sensor volume. A live product that was a 3 stays a 3 until they sunset it.
A 5 is rare
We are early in the cycle. A company can be a real bet at a 3 or 4. None of the first Health Care Equipment ten earned a 5.
The pond
The map starts from the S&P 1500 — the S&P 500, MidCap 400, and SmallCap 600 — as held by the iShares IVV, IJH, and IJR funds. That is a free proxy, not a licensed S&P list. We then drop the tip of the spear (chip and cloud vendors, most of IT) and scan traditional operators. We do not score all 1,500. The product is a short list inside that pond.