Overview
Hallucinations occur because LLMs are predictive models that determine the most likely next word based on patterns, rather than accessing a database of facts. This can lead to the confident assertion of false information.
Causes
- Training Data Gaps: Lack of information on a specific topic.
- Pattern Over-reliance: The model prioritizing linguistic patterns over factual accuracy.
- Contextual Confusion: Misinterpreting complex or ambiguous prompts.
Mitigation
- Using RAG to provide factual context.
- Implementing verification techniques to check outputs against reliable sources.
- Adjusting 'temperature' settings to control how creative or predictable the AI's responses are.