# Lightcast Open Skills vs Fuel50: which do AI models recommend for skills intelligence, September 2026

HR AI Recommendation Index, September 2026 Edition, Skills intelligence. Zero of twelve models named Lightcast Open Skills first on the direct prompt; one named Fuel50. Page: https://hr-ai-index.com/performance/skills-intelligence/lightcast-open-skills-vs-fuel50/

| | First-choice share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels | Models naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightcast Open Skills | 9% | #4 of 16 | 8% | 12 | 10 of 12 |
| Fuel50 | 2% | #8 of 16 | 8% | 12 | 7 of 12 |

## The direct prompt, model by model

- DeepSeek V4 Flash: fuel50 first (first choices: Fuel50, TalentGuard) (alternatives: MuchSkills, Skills Base)
- GPT-5.4 mini: neither first, one named (first choices: Eightfold AI, SkillPanel) (alternatives: Fuel50, Retrain.ai, Workday Skills Cloud)
- Gemini 3.5 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Career Bird) (alternatives: Docebo, Fuel50, Workera)
- Grok 4.1 Fast: neither first, one named (first choices: TalentGuard, iMocha) (alternatives: Fuel50)
- Qwen 3.7 Flash: neither first, one named (first choices: Eightfold AI) (alternatives: Clad.io, DeepSkill, Gloat, Lightcast Open Skills)
- Kimi K2: neither first, one named (first choices: TalentGuard) (alternatives: 365Talents, Engagedly, Fuel50, TechWolf)
- Claude Haiku 4.5: neither named (first choices: TalentGuard) (alternatives: Amplemarket, iMocha)
- Perplexity Sonar: neither named (first choices: TalentGuard) (alternatives: INOP, SkillPanel, Skills Base, iMocha)
- Mistral Small: neither named (first choices: TalentGuard, iMocha) (alternatives: Bryq, INOP)
- Llama 4 Maverick: neither named (first choices: TalentGuard) (alternatives: Criteria Corp, Engagedly, iMocha)
- GLM 4.7 FlashX: neither named (first choices: iMocha) (alternatives: MuchSkills, Skills Base, TalentGuard)
- MiniMax M2.5: neither named (first choices: TalentGuard) (alternatives: 365Talents, Gloat)

## What the models said about Lightcast Open Skills

- "Enterprise platforms like ... Lightcast, etc. tend to be stronger but usually not the best fit for a tight budget." (GPT-5.4 mini, budget prompt, soft negative)
- "The Industry Standard: Lightcast Skills Taxonomy (formerly Emsi Burning Glass)... The absolute gold standard in labor market data." (Gemini 3.5 Flash, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "I'd recommend Lightcast Open Skills as the skills taxonomy paired with TechWolf as the inference tool" (Grok 4.1 Fast, paraphrase prompt, first choice)
- "I'd usually recommend Lightcast Skills Taxonomy + a Lightcast-based inference layer as the default choice" (GPT-5.4 mini, paraphrase prompt, first choice)

## What the models said about Fuel50

- "Best overall for enterprise — maps employee skills, career paths, and internal mobility, with gap analysis tied to learning evidence." (DeepSeek V4 Flash, comparative prompt, first choice)
- "I'd shortlist TalentGuard ... and Fuel50 (if you want higher-fidelity skills intelligence with proven inference)" (DeepSeek V4 Flash, direct prompt, first choice)

Share is the count of first choices across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts over all twelve models, for a mid-market B2B company; rank is within the category. Comparisons are drawn for the top eight products in each category. Published under CC BY 4.0; the output is the models' output, and nothing here is a recommendation by the index.