fix: 3 machine-readable surface bugs (citable unit scaling, stat filters, draft asOf)

src/app/alternatives/[slug]/page.tsx

@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import { SITE } from "@/data/site";
 import { loadAlternative } from "@/lib/alternatives";
 import { Breadcrumb } from "@/components/breadcrumb";
 import { buildBreadcrumbJsonLd, safeJsonLd } from "@/lib/jsonld";
+import { citableAsOf } from "@/lib/citation";
 import { ProviderLogo } from "@/components/provider-logo";
 import { ProviderTypeBadge } from "@/components/provider-type-badge";
 import { isRegion } from "@/lib/brand";
@@ -124,7 +125,7 @@ export default async function AlternativePage({
         isAccessibleForFree: true,
         license: "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
         datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(bench.slug).toISOString(),
-        dateModified: bench.lastRunAt,
+        ...(citableAsOf(bench) ? { dateModified: bench.lastRunAt } : {}),
         variableMeasured: bench.metric,
         isBasedOn: benchUrl,
       },
@@ -137,7 +138,7 @@ export default async function AlternativePage({
         mainEntityOfPage: url,
         articleBody: alt.intro,
         datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(bench.slug).toISOString(),
-        dateModified: bench.lastRunAt,
+        ...(citableAsOf(bench) ? { dateModified: bench.lastRunAt } : {}),
         author: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         publisher: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         about: { "@id": `${url}#dataset` },

src/app/answers/[slug]/page.tsx

@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ import {
   hasLiveDataTokens,
   benchDataPendingFallback,
 } from "@/lib/answers-template";
-import { leader } from "@/lib/citation";
+import { citableAsOf, leader } from "@/lib/citation";
 import { Breadcrumb } from "@/components/breadcrumb";
 import { Pill } from "@/components/pill";
 import { ProviderLogo } from "@/components/provider-logo";
@@ -105,7 +105,13 @@ export default async function AnswerPage({
   // YAML's slug reference) fall through to a neutral fallback via
   // cleanLeftoverTokens so a placeholder string never reaches the SERP.
   const render = (s: string) => cleanLeftoverTokens(renderTemplate(s, bench));
-  const asOfUtc = fmtAsOfUtc(bench.lastRunAt);
+  // Real measurement timestamp on live benches, null on drafts (whose
+  // lastRunAt is a wall-clock placeholder from the loader). Prevents the
+  // visible "Data as of ..." line and the associated <time dateTime>
+  // structured-data anchor from spoofing freshness for a bench that has
+  // never actually been measured.
+  const asOfStamp = citableAsOf(bench);
+  const asOfUtc = asOfStamp ? fmtAsOfUtc(asOfStamp) : null;
   // Detect the "referenced bench has no defensible leader AND the
   // source YAML depends on live tokens" case: without this guard the
   // per-token fallback rewrites {{best_name}} to "The current leader"
@@ -165,7 +171,9 @@ export default async function AnswerPage({
         mainEntityOfPage: url,
         articleBody: `${shortAnswer}\n\n${intro}\n\n${methodology}`,
         datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(bench.slug).toISOString(),
-        dateModified: bench.lastRunAt,
+        ...(citableAsOf(bench)
+          ? { dateModified: bench.lastRunAt }
+          : {}),
         author: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         publisher: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         image: `${SITE.url}/api/og/${bench.slug}`,
@@ -229,9 +237,9 @@ export default async function AnswerPage({
             Answer engines quote a claim far more readily when the date
             of measurement sits beside it. Uses the referenced bench's
             lastRunAt (real data timestamp), not build time. */}
-        {asOfUtc && (
+        {asOfUtc && asOfStamp && (
           <p className="mt-3 text-[11px] text-ink-faint">
-            Data as of <time dateTime={bench.lastRunAt}>{asOfUtc}</time>,
+            Data as of <time dateTime={asOfStamp}>{asOfUtc}</time>,
             refreshed continuously.
           </p>
         )}

src/app/api/citable/[date]/route.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,8 @@ import { NextResponse } from "next/server";
 import { getBenchmarks } from "@/data/benchmarks";
 import { SITE } from "@/data/site";
 import { AllBenchmarksDraftError } from "@/lib/spec";
-import { citeBundle, fieldValue, leader, headlineSentence } from "@/lib/citation";
+import { citableAsOf, citeBundle, fieldValue, leader, headlineSentence } from "@/lib/citation";
+import { valueInDeclaredUnit } from "@/lib/format";
 import { clientKey, rateLimit, tooManyRequests } from "@/lib/rate-limit";
 
 export const runtime = "nodejs";
@@ -111,24 +112,35 @@ export async function GET(
   const data = benches.map((b) => {
     const top = leader(b);
     const insufficient = b.dataConfidence === "insufficient";
+    // `value` and `leader.value` are published in the declared `unit`.
+    // Latency benches with unit "s" store ms internally (fmtUnit
+    // convention); valueInDeclaredUnit converts so a snapshot never
+    // claims 627 seconds for a 627 ms head lag. Same conversion as
+    // the live /api/citable route; missing here caused sub-1 unit
+    // values to leak through as their internal ms representation.
+    const raw = insufficient ? null : fieldValue(b);
     return {
       slug: b.slug,
       title: b.title,
       category: b.category,
       metric: b.metric,
       unit: b.unit,
       status: b.status,
-      value: insufficient ? null : fieldValue(b),
+      value: raw == null ? null : valueInDeclaredUnit(raw, b.unit),
       leader:
         insufficient
           ? null
           : top
-            ? { name: top.name, slug: top.slug, value: top.value }
+            ? {
+                name: top.name,
+                slug: top.slug,
+                value: valueInDeclaredUnit(top.value, b.unit),
+              }
             : null,
       sampleSize: b.sampleSize,
       expectedN: b.expectedN,
       dataConfidence: b.dataConfidence,
-      asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+      asOf: citableAsOf(b),
       headline: headlineSentence(b),
       url: `${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`,
       api: `${SITE.url}/api/stat/${b.slug}`,

src/app/api/citable/route.ts

@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ import { NextResponse } from "next/server";
 import { getBenchmarks } from "@/data/benchmarks";
 import { SITE } from "@/data/site";
 import { AllBenchmarksDraftError } from "@/lib/spec";
-import { citeBundle, fieldValue, leader, headlineSentence } from "@/lib/citation";
+import { citableAsOf, citeBundle, fieldValue, leader, headlineSentence } from "@/lib/citation";
 import { valueInDeclaredUnit } from "@/lib/format";
 import { clientKey, rateLimit, tooManyRequests } from "@/lib/rate-limit";
 
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ export async function GET(req: Request) {
       sampleSize: b.sampleSize,
       expectedN: b.expectedN,
       dataConfidence: b.dataConfidence,
-      asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+      asOf: citableAsOf(b),
       headline: headlineSentence(b),
       url: `${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`,
       api: `${SITE.url}/api/stat/${b.slug}`,

src/app/api/mcp/[transport]/route.ts

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import { z } from "zod";
 import { getBenchmark, getBenchmarks } from "@/data/benchmarks";
 import { SITE } from "@/data/site";
 import {
+  citableAsOf,
   citationQuote,
   fieldValue,
   headlineSentence,
@@ -225,7 +226,7 @@ const mcpHandler = createMcpHandler(
             leader: top,
             headline: headlineSentence(b),
             url: `${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`,
-            asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+            asOf: citableAsOf(b),
           };
         });
         return {
@@ -321,7 +322,7 @@ const mcpHandler = createMcpHandler(
           quote: citationQuote(b, SITE.url),
           pageUrl: `${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`,
           ogImage: `${SITE.url}/api/og/${b.slug}`,
-          asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+          asOf: citableAsOf(b),
           methodology: b.methodology,
           source: b.source,
         };
@@ -497,7 +498,10 @@ const mcpHandler = createMcpHandler(
         md.push(`- Page: ${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`);
         md.push(`- Source: ${b.source}`);
         md.push(`- License: CC-BY-4.0`);
-        md.push(`- Last sample: ${b.lastRunAt}`);
+        {
+          const asOf = citableAsOf(b);
+          md.push(`- Last sample: ${asOf ?? "(no measurement yet, draft)"}`);
+        }
         md.push("");
         md.push(`**Headline.** ${headlineSentence(b)}`);
         md.push("");
@@ -555,7 +559,7 @@ const mcpHandler = createMcpHandler(
           headline: headlineSentence(b),
           quote: citationQuote(b, SITE.url),
           pageUrl: `${SITE.url}/benchmarks/${b.slug}`,
-          asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+          asOf: citableAsOf(b),
           methodology: b.methodology,
           source: b.source,
         };

src/app/api/stat/[slug]/route.ts

@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import { NextResponse } from "next/server";
 import { getBenchmark } from "@/data/benchmarks";
 import { SITE } from "@/data/site";
 import {
+  citableAsOf,
   citationQuote,
   citeBundle,
   fieldValue,
@@ -33,7 +34,31 @@ export async function GET(
   if (!SLUG_RE.test(slug)) {
     return NextResponse.json({ error: "bad_slug" }, { status: 400 });
   }
-  const b = await getBenchmark(slug);
+  // Dimension query params (?chain=, ?region=, ?kind=, ?venue=) mirror
+  // the same client-side selector on the bench page, so a citer asking
+  // "fastest ethereum us-east RPC" gets the per cell leader instead of
+  // the cross chain aggregate. Values pass through to the loader
+  // unchanged. An unknown value (`?chain=nonexistent`) does NOT fall
+  // back to the unfiltered aggregate — the loader returns undefined and
+  // the route below 404s. That is intentional: silently substituting
+  // the aggregate for a mistyped filter would make citers cite the
+  // wrong number without knowing.
+  const url = new URL(req.url);
+  const filters: {
+    chain?: string;
+    region?: string;
+    kind?: string;
+    venue?: string;
+  } = {};
+  const chainParam = url.searchParams.get("chain");
+  const regionParam = url.searchParams.get("region");
+  const kindParam = url.searchParams.get("kind");
+  const venueParam = url.searchParams.get("venue");
+  if (chainParam && chainParam !== "all") filters.chain = chainParam;
+  if (regionParam && regionParam !== "all") filters.region = regionParam;
+  if (kindParam && kindParam !== "all") filters.kind = kindParam;
+  if (venueParam && venueParam !== "all") filters.venue = venueParam;
+  const b = await getBenchmark(slug, filters);
   if (!b || b.editorialStatus !== "live") {
     return NextResponse.json(
       { error: "unknown_slug", slug },
@@ -58,6 +83,11 @@ export async function GET(
     unit: b.unit,
     status: b.status,
     higherIsBetter: b.higherIsBetter,
+    // Echo the applied dimension filter so a citer can verify which
+    // cell (chain / region / kind / venue) their answer covers.
+    // Missing key = "all" for that dimension.
+    filters:
+      Object.keys(filters).length > 0 ? filters : null,
     // Aggregate is "insufficient" (median per-provider sample health
     // below 10 percent of expected_n): refuse to publish a value or
     // leader; the headline is rewritten by headlineSentence so the
@@ -88,7 +118,7 @@ export async function GET(
     sampleSize: b.sampleSize,
     expectedN: b.expectedN,
     dataConfidence: b.dataConfidence,
-    asOf: b.lastRunAt,
+    asOf: citableAsOf(b),
     headline: headlineSentence(b),
     quote: citationQuote(b, SITE.url),
     cite: citeBundle(b, SITE.url),

src/app/benchmarks/[slug]/[chain]/page.tsx

@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import Link from "next/link";
 import { ArrowLeft, ArrowUpRight } from "lucide-react";
 import { getBenchmark } from "@/data/benchmarks";
 import { Breadcrumb } from "@/components/breadcrumb";
+import { citableAsOf } from "@/lib/citation";
 import { liveResults } from "@/lib/provider-filters";
 import { fmtUnit } from "@/lib/format";
 import { capDescription } from "@/lib/seo-text";
@@ -363,7 +364,9 @@ export default async function BenchmarkChainPage({
         articleBody: `${keyFacts} ${stripInlineMarkdown(explainer.body)}`,
         image: `${SITE.url}/api/og/${benchmark.slug}`,
         datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(benchmark.slug).toISOString(),
-        dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt,
+        ...(citableAsOf(benchmark)
+          ? { dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt }
+          : {}),
         author: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         publisher: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         about: { "@id": `${benchmarkUrl}#dataset` },

src/app/benchmarks/[slug]/page.tsx

@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import { ExportVideoSection } from "@/components/export-video-section";
 import { ReportSection } from "@/components/report-section";
 import { CATEGORY_COLOR } from "@/lib/category-colors";
 import {
+  citableAsOf,
   groundingTraceLine,
   groundingTraceParts,
   headlineSentence,
@@ -310,7 +311,12 @@ export default async function BenchmarkPage({
       variableMeasured,
       category: benchmark.category,
       datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(benchmark.slug).toISOString(),
-      dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt,
+      // For drafts (no measurement history) skip dateModified so the
+      // structured-data channel does not spoof freshness. Same rule
+      // applied to /api/citable, /api/stat and the MCP surface.
+      ...(citableAsOf(benchmark)
+        ? { dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt }
+        : {}),
       measurementTechnique: benchmark.methodology.join(" "),
     }),
     // Re-bind creator + publisher to the global @id reference so the bench
@@ -365,7 +371,9 @@ export default async function BenchmarkPage({
         // Clears the "Missing field image" warning in Rich Results Test.
         image: `${SITE.url}/api/og/${benchmark.slug}`,
         datePublished: getBenchCreatedAt(benchmark.slug).toISOString(),
-        dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt,
+        ...(citableAsOf(benchmark)
+          ? { dateModified: benchmark.lastRunAt }
+          : {}),
         author: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         publisher: { "@id": `${SITE.url}/#org` },
         about: { "@id": `${benchmarkUrl}#dataset` },

src/data/benchmarks.ts

@@ -115,7 +115,7 @@ export const getBenchmarksSafe = cache(loadAllBenchmarksSafe);
 
 export async function getBenchmark(
   slug: string,
-  options: { chain?: string; region?: string } = {}
+  options: { chain?: string; region?: string; kind?: string; venue?: string } = {}
 ): Promise<Benchmark | undefined> {
   return loadBenchmark(slug, options);
 }

src/lib/citation.ts

@@ -20,6 +20,16 @@ function citationCandidates(b: Benchmark): ProviderResult[] {
   return live.filter((r) => r.dataConfidence !== "insufficient");
 }
 
+/** Timestamp of the last real measurement, or null when the bench has
+ *  no measurement history yet (draft placeholder). Draft benches carry
+ *  a wall-clock `lastRunAt` for type safety (Benchmark.lastRunAt is a
+ *  non-nullable string), which downstream JSON, JSON-LD and MCP surfaces
+ *  would otherwise expose as a real freshness signal to LLM crawlers.
+ *  Use this helper on every machine-readable surface. */
+export function citableAsOf(b: Benchmark): string | null {
+  return b.status === "draft" ? null : b.lastRunAt;
+}
+
 /** Median value of the benchmark (the field shown in the headline). */
 export function fieldValue(b: Benchmark): number | null {
   if (b.status !== "live") return null;