Researchers prove a "tokenizer trilemma": metrics can satisfy only two of three desiderata
RylanSchaeffer · x · 2026-10-03
In part 10/11 of his "Tokenizer Myths" talk series, researcher RylanSchaeffer announces a theoretical result: a tokenizer trilemma. Out of three reasonable desiderata for tokenizer evaluation metrics, a metric can only ever obtain two — meaning the choice of metric implicitly determines what tokenizer research is even possible. A preprint is forthcoming; slides are already available.
Related event: Researcher Debunks Tokenizer Myths, Proves Tokenizer Trilemma(3 posts)→
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