One forward pass is one token — the lock-in happens in the autoregressive loop

gerardsans · x · 2026-09-09

Gerard Sans untangles a common conflation: a single forward pass (one token, residual stream carry-over within that pass) is a different level from the autoregressive loop. The lock-in shows up in the loop — each emitted token feeds back as the next prior, so repeating within a session gives the original task 'mass', and later instructions arrive after the truck is already moving. His summary: the pass computes, the loop commits.

Related event: 'Momentum Prior': Agents Locked Onto Initial Tasks Resist New Instructions(2 posts)→

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