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LLM Lab 4: Creative vs Precise

Adjust sampling settings to shift between safe, factual outputs and diverse, creative ideas.

Published January 8, 2026

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LLM Lab 3: Prompt Anatomy Workshop

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LLM Lab 5: Instructions and Guardrails

Settings that change the vibe

Temperature, top-k, and top-p control how adventurous the model is when sampling the next token.

Can You Guess?

Which setting makes outputs more varied?

Tuning for intent

Follow the steps and watch each checkpoint light up as you progress.

1

Step 1: Low temperature

Great for facts, code, or repeatable templates.

2

Step 2: Moderate temperature

Balanced ideation with some variation but still on-track.

3

Step 3: High temperature

Max creativity; expect surprising phrasing and occasional mistakes.

Try this now

Run the same prompt three ways

  • Prompt: “Write a two-line product slogan for a note-taking app.”
  • Send it with temperature 0.1, 0.5, and 0.9.
  • Compare originality, specificity, and mistakes across runs.

    • Key Takeaways

    • ✓ Sampling controls creativity and risk.
    • ✓ Lower temperature improves repeatability.
    • ✓ Use higher temperature for brainstorming, lower for instructions or code.

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    Lesson: LLM Lab 4: Creative vs Precise

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