GlossaryUpdated 2026-09-21

Product identity

Product identity is the answer to which exact product this is: brand, model, variant and the identifiers that pin them down. Two pages share an identity when they describe the same item; an AI answer is only as correct as the identity it attached its facts to.

How it differs from product information

Product information is what is said about a product: capacity, weight, compatibility, price. Identity is what those statements are about. A correct capacity attached to the wrong variant is correct information and a wrong answer.

Why it breaks

A model assembles a product from several sources that do not agree on names: the maker's page, a retailer listing with last season's figure, a review of a bundle. Unless identifiers tie them together, the model resolves the disagreement by guessing, and the guess is invisible in the answer.

Example

"Trail 45" and "Trail 45 (2025)" may be one product or two. With a GTIN and the variant stated on each page, a model does not have to decide.

Where this was measured

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