A brand mention is any time an AI answer names a brand — the atomic unit of AI visibility, from which ranks, scores, and share of voice are computed.
Not all mentions are equal. Position matters (first named beats sixth), framing matters (recommended beats listed beats warned-against), and consistency matters (named every time beats named once). Scoring systems weight all three.
Mentions are also where measurement must stay honest: a mention only counts if it appears in a genuine recorded model answer. An index that cannot show you the answer behind a mention is asking you to take its numbers on faith.