Conditioning LLMs

While base models such as GPT-4 can generate impressive text on a wide range of topics, conditioning them can enhance their capabilities in terms of task relevance, specificity, and coherence, and can guide the model’s behavior to be in line with what is considered ethical and appropriate. Conditioning refers to a collection of methods used to direct the model’s generation of outputs. This includes not only prompt crafting but also more systemic techniques, such as fine-tuning the model on specific datasets to adapt its responses to certain topics or styles persistently. In the later sections of this chapter, we’ll focus on fine-tuning and prompt techniques as two methods of conditioning.

Conditioning techniques enable LLMs to comprehend and execute complex instructions, delivering content that closely matches our expectations. This ranges from off-the-cuff interactions to systematic training that orients a model’s behavior toward...