AI NativeAI Native does not ask you to type in a competitor list. It discovers competitors from data: your scan answers. Every name an AI engine mentions alongside yours on unbranded discovery questions is a competitor candidate, and the leaderboard is built from those observations. You see who AI actually discusses in your category, not who you assumed was relevant.
How discovery works
When a live scan scores your unbranded answers, it records every brand named in those answers. Share of voice is calculated by counting how many times each name appears across all answers and dividing by the total voice in the set. Names only appear here if an AI engine mentioned them while answering a question about your category.
The leaderboard
The competitor view in Intelligence shows a leaderboard per product. Each row shows the competitor's share of voice, the change versus the previous scan, how many times they were named, whether they are beating you, and their tracking status. A stacked bar chart breaks share of voice by funnel stage so you can see whether a competitor is more prominent at awareness or decision. Clicking a row opens a head-to-head view showing answers where only you were named, both were named, and only they were named, plus key learnings about where the gap is concentrated.
The three tiers: direct, distribution, substitute
Not every competitor competes with you in the same way:
- Direct: same product, same business model. These compete head-to-head for the same buyer.
- Distribution: a different vehicle that meets the same need - a comparison site or aggregator that channels demand in your category.
- Substitute: a different product a buyer might choose instead.
The tier tells you what lever to use. A direct competitor calls for content and entity strength. A distribution competitor calls for presence on the sources it controls. A substitute calls for positioning and comparison copy.
Discovered vs tracked
A competitor starts as discovered: it appeared in your answers but you have not acted on it. To move it into the tracked set, click "+ Track" on its leaderboard row. The platform auto-classifies its tier. You can accept the classification or change it from the dropdown. Tracked competitors show their tier badge, and their tier feeds the WHY ledger's action recommendations. You can retag a tier at any time.
No competitor access needed
The entire workflow runs from your scan data. You need no login credentials, API access, or any relationship with competitors.
Questions
How are competitors discovered if I never typed any names?
They appear in your scan answers. When an unbranded answer names a company, that company is recorded as a competitor candidate and appears in the leaderboard ranked by share of voice.
What is share of voice?
Share of voice is the fraction of total brand-name appearances in your unbranded answers that belong to each brand. If 100 brand mentions appear and you are named 30 times while a competitor is named 25 times, your share is 30% and theirs 25%.
What does the head-to-head view show?
It shows the count of answers where only you were named, both were named, and only the competitor was named, plus key learnings about which funnel stages and personas show the widest gap.
Can I change a competitor's tier after setting it?
Yes. The tier dropdown on the leaderboard row lets you retag between direct, distribution, and substitute at any time.
What happens to a competitor if I change my prompt set?
The leaderboard always reflects the most recent completed scan. A prompt-set change may shift which questions are asked, so the next scan may show different competitors or different share ratios.
Does a competitor need to appear in multiple scans to appear?
No. A competitor appears as soon as it is named in any answer in the current scan. The trend delta is shown when a previous scan exists for comparison.
Should I track every competitor in the leaderboard?
Track the names that are strategically relevant. Discovery gives you the full signal; tracking focuses action planning and tier-based recommendations. The leaderboard shows everyone regardless of tracking status.