Glossary

LLM

A large language model is a type of artificial intelligence designed to process, understand, and generate human language text. These models are trained on massive datasets containing billions of words, enabling them to learn patterns and relationships in language. LLMs use deep learning techniques, particularly transformer neural networks, to perform various language-related tasks.

Context and Usage

LLMs are typically used in natural language processing applications across technology, business, healthcare, education, and creative industries. They power chatbots, virtual assistants, search engines, content generation tools, and automated translation services. Developers, researchers, organizations, and individual users employ LLMs for tasks ranging from customer support automation to scientific research and creative writing. The technology is integrated into enterprise software, consumer applications, and specialized professional tools.

Common Challenges

LLMs face significant challenges including hallucination, where models generate fluent but factually incorrect information. They can perpetuate biases present in training data, leading to discriminatory outputs. Other limitations include high computational costs, context window constraints, and vulnerability to adversarial attacks. Safety concerns involve value misalignment, potential for misuse in generating misleading content, and difficulties in ensuring reliable performance across diverse applications without appropriate safeguards and monitoring.

Related Topics: transformer architecture, neural networks, natural language processing, artificial intelligence, machine learning, deep learning, foundation models, generative AI, bias mitigation, hallucination detection, prompt engineering, retrieval-augmented generation

Jan 22, 2026

Reviewed by Dan Yan