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A Mechanistic Explanatory Strategy for XAI

Created by
  • Haebom

Author

Marcin Rabiza

Outline

This paper points out the lack of conceptual foundations and integration of explainable AI (XAI) research with broader discourses on scientific explanation, and presents a new XAI study that bridges this gap by drawing on explanatory strategies from a variety of scientific and philosophy of science literature. In particular, we present a mechanistic strategy for explaining the functional composition of deep learning systems, which involves identifying the mechanisms that drive decision-making in order to explain opaque AI systems. In the case of deep neural networks, this means identifying functionally relevant components such as neurons, layers, circuits, or activation patterns, and decomposing, localizing, and reconstructing them to understand their roles. Through proof-of-concept case studies in image recognition and language modeling, we connect this theoretical approach to recent research from AI research labs such as OpenAI and Anthropic, and suggest that a systematic approach to model construction can facilitate more thoroughly explainable AI by uncovering elements that individual explainability techniques may overlook.

Takeaways, Limitations

Takeaways:
To present a novel mechanistic approach that strengthens the conceptual foundations of XAI research and integrates it with broader discourses on scientific explanation.
Provides a systematic methodology for understanding the functional composition of deep neural networks.
Suggests the possibility of developing more thoroughly explainable AI by uncovering factors that individual explainability techniques may overlook.
Demonstrates practical applicability through connections with cutting-edge research from AI research labs such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
Limitations:
Further experimental validation of the applicability and efficiency of the proposed mechanistic approach is needed.
It may not be a universal explanation strategy applicable to all types of deep learning systems.
There may still be challenges in fully understanding the functional architecture of complex deep neural networks.
There is a need to establish objective criteria for the interpretation and evaluation of mechanistic explanations.
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