Panel report: monthly diff, May 2026
14 new segments joined the panel in May
Each month the mapou Panel runs the same canonical prompt set across the AI engines on the panel and publishes refreshed scores. This report records what changed: new segments, expanded brand panels, the biggest movers and the brands that just entered the tracked set.
- New segments added
- 14
- Brand panels expanded to 20
- 21
- Tracked brands across 25 segments
- 500
- Run snapshots in the archive
- 56
Generated from the run archive at each build. 50,000 verdicts per monthly canonical run. Read the methodology
Finding 1
14 segments joined the panel and 21 existing panels grew to 20 brands
The new segments are athleisure, men's fashion, women's fashion, kids-fashion, streetwear, luxury-watches, ce-smartphones, laptops, audio brands, smart home brands, TV brands, P&C insurers, fs-insurance-life and fs-insurance-health.
Existing segments were brought up to 20 or more tracked brands each. New entries came from emerging-brand mentions where AI engines already cited the brand at threshold (3 prompts on 2 engines). The panel now tracks 500 brands across 25 competitive segments.
Finding 2
Mercedes-Benz gained 18 Panel Score points in luxury and EV brands, the largest rise on the panel
Brands whose Panel Score rose most between consecutive canonical runs in the archive. Only moves of 5 points or more are listed.
| Brand | Segment | Was | Now | Change | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercedes-Benz | luxury and EV brands | 50 | 68 | +18 | Stage 2 |
| Porsche | luxury and EV brands | 51 | 69 | +18 | Stage 2 |
| Tesla | luxury and EV brands | 60 | 77 | +17 | Stage 3 |
| BMW | luxury and EV brands | 60 | 77 | +17 | Stage 3 |
| Briogeo | haircare | 21 | 37 | +16 | Stage 1 |
| Hyatt | hotels | 29 | 44 | +15 | Stage 1 |
| Kia | mainstream auto brands | 35 | 50 | +15 | Stage 2 |
| CeraVe | skincare | 53 | 68 | +15 | Stage 2 |
| Hyundai | mainstream auto brands | 52 | 66 | +14 | Stage 2 |
| Tom Ford | fragrance | 33 | 46 | +13 | Stage 1 |
Source: mapou Panel run archive.
Finding 3
Expedia lost 25 Panel Score points in online travel agencies, the largest drop on the panel
Brands whose Panel Score fell most between consecutive canonical runs. Only drops of 5 points or more are listed.
| Brand | Segment | Was | Now | Change | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expedia | online travel agencies | 77 | 52 | -25 | Stage 2 |
| Booking.com | online travel agencies | 78 | 56 | -22 | Stage 2 |
| Charles Schwab | investing platforms | 64 | 43 | -21 | Stage 1 |
| Capital One | credit cards | 74 | 55 | -19 | Stage 2 |
| Vanguard | investing platforms | 56 | 37 | -19 | Stage 1 |
| Citi | credit cards | 48 | 30 | -18 | Stage 1 |
| Fidelity | investing platforms | 77 | 59 | -18 | Stage 2 |
| Lululemon | athleisure | 77 | 59 | -18 | Stage 2 |
| Betterment | investing platforms | 47 | 31 | -16 | Stage 1 |
| Chase | credit cards | 92 | 77 | -15 | Stage 3 |
Source: mapou Panel run archive.
Finding 4
LG posted the strongest debut, at Panel Score 84 in home appliances
Brands measured for the first time this month, either in a new segment or added to an expanded panel. Sorted by first-month Panel Score.
| Brand | Segment | Panel Score | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| LG | home appliances | 84 | Stage 3 |
| State Farm | P&C insurers | 81 | Stage 3 |
| Verizon | residential telecom | 78 | Stage 3 |
| Bosch | home appliances | 77 | Stage 3 |
| T-Mobile | residential telecom | 76 | Stage 3 |
| Everlane | women's fashion | 75 | Stage 3 |
| AT&T | residential telecom | 74 | Stage 2 |
| Samsung | home appliances | 73 | Stage 2 |
| Lenovo | laptops | 72 | Stage 2 |
| RingCentral | business telecom | 72 | Stage 2 |
| Chase Sapphire | credit cards | 71 | Stage 2 |
| Progressive | P&C insurers | 69 | Stage 2 |
Source: mapou Panel run archive.
How we measured this
- Mover threshold
- A brand is listed as a mover when its Panel Score changed by 5 points or more between two consecutive canonical runs for its segment.
- New brands
- Brands with no prior Panel Score in the archive. Their first-month score is shown with no change column.
- Source
- 56 run snapshots in the git-versioned run archive, recomputed at every build.
- Scale
- 500 brands, 20 buyer-intent prompts each, 50,000 verdicts per monthly canonical run.
- Tiers
- Default choice (Panel Score 75+), Repeat use (50 to 74), First encounter (25 to 49), Not yet cited (under 25).
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First Tuesday of each month: the movers, new segments, the latest emerging brands and what AI search did differently. Two minutes to read.