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arXiv:2501.09223cs.CL

Foundations of Large Language Models

Tong Xiao, Jingbo Zhu

Abstract

This is a book about large language models. As indicated by the title, it primarily focuses on foundational concepts rather than comprehensive coverage of all cutting-edge technologies. The book is structured into six main chapters, each exploring a key area: pre-training, generative models, prompting, alignment, inference, and reasoning. It is intended for college students, professionals, and practitioners in natural language processing and related fields, and can serve as a reference for anyone interested in large language models.

arXiv comments
Minor corrections
Journal reference
DOI
Subjects
cs.CLComputation and Language cs.AIArtificial Intelligence cs.LGMachine Learning

On Hacker News

Linked by 2 identifiable commenters in 5 comments across 5 threads, from Jan 2025 to Aug 2026. Found in 4 HN submissions from Jan 2025 to Nov 2026. Open submission discussions.

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Discussed in comments5 threads

  1. AI by Hand 1 comment
  2. Observed Agent Sandbox Bypasses 1 comment

    • > An algorithm isn't really AI then. But they are though. For a seminal book discussing why and detailing many algorithms categorized under the AI umbrella, I recommend: Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach[0] And for LLMs specifically: Foundations of Large Language…

      AdieuToLogicView on HNParent context

  3. The Tiny Teams Playbook 1 comment

    • > you are being obtuse, so i'll counter your obnoxious wikipedia link with my own and never reply to you again. And you are being myopic, so I will counter your trite response with my own link which explains why LLM's are very useful for what they are, but in no way what the…

      AdieuToLogicView on HNParent context

  4. AI is different 1 comment

    • > That doesn't mean we _understand_ them, that just means we can put the blocks together to build one. Perhaps this[0] will help in understanding them then: Foundations of Large Language Models This is a book about large language models. As indicated by the title, it primarily…

      AdieuToLogicView on HNParent context

  5. Foundations of Large Language Models 1 comment

    • Me to ChatGPT: Assume you are a college instructor for a Freshman Computer Science course. Your job is to take a pdf file from the internet and teach the topics to you students. You will do this by writing paragraphs or bullet points about any and all key concepts in the PDF…

      MR4DView on HNParent context

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