Explaining LLM predictions with attribution methods
Attribution methods aim to identify which input features contribute most to a model’s prediction.
We need to discuss attribution methods because understanding why a model produces a particular prediction is critical for both interpretability and trustworthiness in real-world applications. Attribution methods provide a systematic way to trace the influence of specific input tokens on the model’s output, which is particularly important in LLMs where predictions are often made from complex, high-dimensional token embeddings and non-linear interactions across multiple attention layers. Without attribution, users and developers are left with a black-box model that produces outputs without any transparent rationale, making it difficult to validate decisions, debug behaviors, or ensure alignment with intended use cases.
One popular attribution method is integrated gradients.
Integrated gradients is an attribution method...