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Equation 2 · Part 9 · Measuring AI Agent Architectures: Evidence, Benchmarks, and Uncertainty

superscript

pat least one of k=1−(1−p)k,pall k succeed=pk.p_{\text{at least one of } k} = 1 - (1-p)^k, \qquad p_{\text{all } k \text{ succeed}} = p^k.
superscript

What this part means

A raised number can be a power. When it is a label or bound, it selects a case or the upper limit of a sum; the formula’s structure distinguishes these uses.

Its job in the formula

A raised mark can be a power or an index. Its position and the surrounding notation determine which.

The passage around this formula

The distinction matters because the two metrics behave very differently even under the most favourable possible assumption — that trials are statistically independent. Write p for the probability that a single trial on a given task succeeds. Under independence, pat least one of k=1−(1−p)k,pall k succeed=pkp_{\text{at least one of } k} = 1 - (1-p)^k, \qquad p_{\text{all } k \text{ succeed}} = p^k. The first quantity rises quickly toward one as k grows, which is the intuitive but misleading sense in which “just try again” seems to fix unreliability. The second quantity falls quickly toward zero, and it is the quantity that matters if a task must be completed correctly on a specific occasion rather than merely being solvable in principle across several attempts.

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Learn the underlying idea

An exponent tells how a base is used in multiplication. In x³, x is the base and 3 is the exponent: x³ = x × x × x.

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Sources cited in the article section

These citations provide research context; check each source for the exact claim it supports.