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Trust Index™

Evidence-based risk intelligence for AI tools — evaluating stability, pricing transparency, data governance, and vendor reliability at a specific point in time.

What is the Trust Index™?

The Trust Index™ is a deterministic, evidence-based system powered by the Trust Intelligence Engine. It evaluates AI tools across five trust dimensions: stability, pricing practices, data governance, vendor reliability, and adoption risk context. Every tool receives a Trust Index score (0-100) and a Trust Horizon™ (confidence window) based on transparent, objective signals — not popularity, sponsorship, or AI opinions.

Adoption risk context reflects maturity and uncertainty — not popularity, traffic, or user counts.

Unlike feature comparisons or marketing claims, the Trust Index answers: “What adoption risks should I know about?”

Trust Index v6.0 — In Progress

The current Trust Index™ score (v5.0) evaluates privacy policy existence and quality signals only. We are actively developing v6.0, which will expand the framework to additional dimensions such as:

  • • Security & data handling signals
  • • Vendor maturity & operational stability
  • • Pricing transparency & volatility
  • • Human governance & dispute resolution workflows

These dimensions are NOT active yet and do NOT affect current scores. All current scores remain deterministic, evidence-based, and privacy-scoped.

Why AI tools need trust & risk analysis

AI software is volatile. Tools disappear overnight. Pricing changes without notice. Terms of service shift unexpectedly. Data governance is unclear or missing.

The Trust Index™ exists because adoption risk is real and measurable. We surface confirmed risks, known uncertainties, and stability patterns — information most directories ignore entirely.

What the Trust Score represents

The Trust Score is a number from 0 to 100 that reflects adoption risk based on confirmed signals and known uncertainties. Higher scores indicate fewer identified concerns.Lower scores do not mean “unsafe” — they mean more risk factors or information gaps exist that warrant closer evaluation.

Score ranges map directly to the Health Status shown on tool pages (Stable, Caution, Risky) for clarity.

75-100
Stable
Low identified risk. Suitable for production evaluation. Standard due diligence applies.
50-74
Use with Awareness
Some concerns or uncertainties identified. Review details before committing.
0-49
Elevated Concerns
Multiple concerns or significant information gaps. Evaluate carefully.

Health statuses

🟢 Stable
Lower risk factors. No major concerns observed. Commonly deployed in production environments after standard vendor evaluation.
🟡 Caution
Moderate risk factors or uncertainty present. Typically deployed in testing and proof-of-concept contexts with monitoring.
🔴 Risky
Higher risk factors present. Organizations typically conduct extended evaluation before production deployment.

Trust Horizon™

Evidence Validity Window
The Trust Horizon™ indicates how long the current Trust Index score is expected to remain valid, based on evidence recency and observed stability. This reflects evidence freshness—not safety level or tool longevity.
⚠️ Trust Horizon is informational only. A longer horizon does not mean "safer"—it means evidence is more comprehensive and recent.
  • 18-24 months: Extensive historical data, consistent signals, no recent volatility.
  • 12 months: Moderate history with stable patterns, or mature tools with minor uncertainties.
  • 6 months: Recent tools, mixed signals, or notable information gaps.
  • 3 months: Confirmed risks, high volatility, or significant missing evidence. Re-evaluate frequently.

Free vs Pro visibility

Free users see

  • • Trust Score (0-100)
  • • Health status (Stable / Caution / Risky)
  • • Confidence horizon (months)
  • • Short risk explanation

Pro users unlock deeper transparency

  • • Full signal-level breakdown (all trust dimensions)
  • • Historical Trust Index changes over time
  • • Trust event timeline (breaches, acquisitions, policy changes)
  • • Risk monitoring alerts and notifications
  • • Tool comparison by trust dimensions
Upgrade to Pro

What the Trust Index™ is not

  • ×Not a review score or endorsement
  • ×Not a prediction of future success or failure
  • ×Not influenced by payments, affiliates, or sponsorships

Want to understand exactly how scores are calculated?

The Trust Index™ methodology explains how every score is calculated, what criteria are evaluated, and why certain tools rank higher than others.

Read the full methodology