Exploration-Distillation Prevents Capability Degradation in RL, Beats RND at Matched Wall-Clock
micahgoldblum · x · 2026-10-13
Further details on Exploration-Distillation (ExpDis):
- It prevents the degradation in general capabilities and knowledge observed when directly applying a novelty bonus during RL, since ExpDis insulates the student from the explorer's degradation.
- Experiments show combining ExpDis with random network distillation yields better RLVR at matched wall-clock time.
- These gains persist or grow for pass@k with large k, showcasing improved diversity rather than mere sharpening.
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