Why Transformers Outperform RNNs: Polynomial Parameters Compact vs Exponential for Certain Languages
chrmanning · x · 2026-08-19
Chris Manning highlights the paper 'Transformers are Inherently Succinct', offering a theoretical reason for Transformers' practical superiority over RNNs. The study shows that fixed-precision polynomial-size transformers can compactly represent certain languages that would require an exponential number of parameters for RNNs to represent.
Related event: New Paper: Transformers Are Inherently Succinct, Explaining Edge Over RNNs(2 posts)→
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