Research Integrity
DataEI's research is earned, never bought. This page documents how we keep editorial coverage independent of sponsorship, subscriptions, and paid engagement — and what sponsors and subscribers do and do not get for their support.
The Core Principle
A vendor appears in a Leverage Benchmark Report or category analysis only because it passes the leverage-metric filter — full stop. No vendor can pay to be included, ranked higher, or have a weakness softened.
Inclusion, ranking, and findings in every Leverage Benchmark Report, category analysis, and research brief are determined solely by the DataEI methodology — collected data, the Leverage Index calculation, and analyst review. Sponsorship, subscription, or paid engagement cannot buy, lift, or soften coverage.
AI agents handle collection and synthesis at scale, but every published finding is reviewed and decided by a DataEI analyst. No agent output is published as final word, and no commercial relationship overrides an analyst's editorial judgment.
How We Separate Money From Coverage
DataEI operates three distinct layers. Sponsorship and subscription sit in Layer 2 — they fund research production and access, never rankings. Editorial coverage lives in Layer 1 and is unreachable by Layer 2 money.
Independent research output: Leverage Benchmark Reports, category analyses, research briefs, and briefings findings. Driven only by the methodology and analyst review. Sponsors and subscribers cannot influence, order, soften, or suppress Layer 1 content.
Paid relationships that fund research production and access, not coverage. Sponsors underwrite report cycles and category sections in exchange for disclosed brand visibility — never ranking influence. Subscribers pay for access to research, data, and analyst time.
Fee-for-service work: advisory, custom research, and commissioned briefings. Always labeled as commissioned. A vendor that engages DataEI for paid work is still subject to the same leverage-metric filter as any other vendor in editorial coverage.
Sponsorship
Sponsorship underwrites the cost of producing DataEI research. It buys brand visibility and disclosure — never placement, ranking, or softened findings.
Underwrites a full Leverage Benchmark Report cycle. Receives brand visibility on the report cover, landing page, and distribution channels — clearly labeled as sponsorship. Never on rankings, scores, or analyst findings.
Underwrites one capability-category section of a report. Receives a disclosed sponsor badge on that section. The sponsor's own product is evaluated by the identical leverage-metric filter applied to every other vendor — no preference, no exemption.
- Inclusion in a report or category
- A higher ranking or score
- Softening, removal, or delay of a weakness or finding
- Advance access to a competitor's findings
- Editorial review or veto over analyst conclusions
Subscriptions
Subscriptions are DataEI's primary commercial model — paying customers who fund independent research by purchasing access to it. A subscription buys access and analyst time, never editorial influence.
- Full access to all Leverage Benchmark Reports and research briefs
- Underlying datasets and Leverage Index calculations
- Scheduled analyst time for interpretation and Q&A
- Early access to published findings (after analyst sign-off, never before)
- Research Briefing Program priority for their own vendor profile
- A higher Leverage Index score or ranking
- Inclusion in a report the subscriber's company would not otherwise earn
- Softening or suppression of a finding about the subscriber's company
- Editorial veto or preview-before-publication rights
- Preferential treatment in competitor coverage
The subscription model is built so that the people who pay us are the ones who value independent research — not the ones who want to shape it. A subscriber funds the next benchmark cycle by buying the output of the last one. If a subscriber's company earns a low Leverage Index score, that score publishes exactly as it would for any non-subscriber. The analyst reviewing the subscriber's segment is not the analyst on their account. Editorial and commercial functions are separated by role, not just by policy.
Disclosure & Labeling
Every paid relationship is disclosed. Every piece of sponsored content is labeled. And any conflict between a paid engagement and editorial coverage is surfaced and handled — not buried.
Every report and section carries a sponsor disclosure badge where applicable. Commissioned work is labeled as commissioned. When sponsor or subscriber relationships are active, they are disclosed on the relevant report — not quietly attached.
Sponsored sections are marked "Sponsored by [Name]" on the section header. Commissioned research is marked "Commissioned research" at the top. Editorial coverage carries no sponsor label — because it isn't sponsored.
DataEI is currently a single-analyst operation, so the "recuse to a second analyst" model used by larger research houses does not yet apply. Instead, when the analyst has an active paid engagement with a vendor, that conflict is disclosed on the vendor's coverage, and the analyst's involvement is noted. Coverage is never softened or suppressed because of the relationship — the leverage-metric filter still applies identically. As DataEI adds analysts, this policy will move to the standard second-analyst sign-off model, and this section will be updated to reflect it.
Questions or Concerns
If you believe a DataEI finding was shaped by a commercial relationship, or want to report a conflict, contact the editorial lead directly. Concerns are reviewed by an analyst not involved in the original coverage.
Email: research@dataei.com
All concerns are logged and reviewed. Substantiated conflicts trigger a published correction and a recusal review.