Glossary

Plain-language definitions of the terms this bundle uses. It grows as the bundle does.

Analyst brief A piece of commentary from an industry analyst or research firm that argues a thesis about the market, usually backed by surveys or proprietary data. An analyst brief is an opinion with evidence — not a peer-reviewed study. We treat the piece as a primary source for its own figures.

Primary source The original publication we're briefing — the analyst article, vendor report, or market commentary itself. A brief is based on one primary source. If that source cites another, we trace back to the original where we can.

Stake / conflict of interest When an author or their employer has a financial or competitive interest in a conclusion. Stake doesn't make a piece wrong — it's a signal to read more carefully. We note it in the "How much to trust it" section of every brief.

Pilot-to-production gap The tendency of enterprise AI initiatives to succeed in limited pilots but fail to scale into production systems used by real employees day-to-day. A recurring theme in adoption analysis.

Services-as-Software The thesis, associated with HFS Research and others, that AI will shift the enterprise services market from human-delivered work billed by the hour toward software-delivered outcomes. Relevant to how adoption analysts model AI's long-term market impact.