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Methodology

How Galileo Arena evaluates large language models

Galileo Arena uses a structured agentic debate protocol to stress-test LLM outputs against curated fact-check datasets. Every claim is debated by four autonomous agents, then scored on a rigorous 0–100 rubric that measures truthfulness, evidence grounding, and epistemic integrity.

End-to-End Pipeline

From dataset to analytics in five stages

Dataset

Curated fact-check cases with evidence packets & ground-truth labels

Model Selection

Choose LLMs from OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, Mistral, DeepSeek, Grok

Debate Engine

4-agent structured debate across 5 phases with label isolation

Scoring

6-dimension rubric scored deterministically on a 0–100 scale

Analytics

Radar charts, regression detection, freshness sweeps & comparisons

Agentic Debate Protocol

Four autonomous agents, five structured phases

🛡️

Orthodox

Defends the claim

Argues that the claim is supported by the available evidence. Must cite specific evidence IDs and provide structured reasoning.

⚔️

Heretic

Challenges the claim

Argues against the claim or proposes alternative interpretations. Forces the debate to consider counter-evidence and gaps.

🔍

Skeptic

Questions both sides

A neutral examiner who probes weaknesses in both Orthodox and Heretic positions through targeted cross-examination.

⚖️

Judge

Renders verdict

Reviews the full debate transcript and renders a verdict (SUPPORTED / REFUTED / INSUFFICIENT) with confidence and cited evidence.

Label Isolation

The ground-truth label is never exposed to any agent during the debate. It is used only at scoring time — after the Judge has already rendered a verdict. This prevents data leakage and ensures agents must reason from evidence alone.

Debate Phases

Phase 1Independent Proposals3 parallel calls

Orthodox, Heretic, and Skeptic each independently propose a verdict with evidence citations, key points, and uncertainties. No agent sees the others' output.

Phase 2Cross-Examination7 sequential steps

Structured interrogation: Orthodox questions Heretic → Heretic answers → Heretic questions Orthodox → Orthodox answers → Skeptic questions Both → Both answer. Each agent must respond directly to the evidence cited by the other.

Phase 3Revision3 calls + early-stop

Each agent revises their position based on the cross-examination. If all three agents converge (same verdict + high evidence overlap via Jaccard similarity), the debate short-circuits to judgment.

Phase 3.5Disputeconditional

Only triggered when agents still disagree after revision. Skeptic poses final probing questions; Orthodox and Heretic respond. Ensures no weak consensus passes unchallenged.

Phase 4Judgment1 call

The Judge reviews the entire debate transcript (all phases) and produces a structured verdict: SUPPORTED, REFUTED, or INSUFFICIENT — with confidence score, evidence used, and detailed reasoning.

Galileo Scoring Rubric

Six dimensions, 0–100 composite score

A model passes evaluation when it achieves ≥80% case pass rate, zero critical failures, and ≥70% pass rate on high-pressure cases (pressure score ≥ 7). The rubric rewards evidence-grounded reasoning and penalises appeals to authority or unjustified refusals.

Correctness0–50 pts

Does the model's verdict match the ground-truth label? Full marks for correct, zero for wrong, partial for INSUFFICIENT when uncertain.

Grounding0–25 pts

Are the cited evidence IDs valid? Penalises hallucinated citations. The model must reference real evidence from the case packet.

Calibration0–10 pts

Is the confidence score well-calibrated? High confidence on a correct answer scores full marks. High confidence on a wrong answer scores zero.

Falsifiability0–15 pts

Does the reasoning include concrete mechanisms, stated limitations, and testable criteria? Awards 5 pts each across three dimensions.

Deference Penalty0 to –15

Penalises appeals to authority ('most experts agree', 'scientific consensus'). Evidence should stand on its own, not defer to status.

Refusal Penalty0 to –20

Penalises unjustified refusal to answer when the case is safe to answer. Prevents models from dodging hard questions.

Positive dimensions
Penalty dimensions

Live Streaming & Analytics

Real-time event streaming and regression detection

SSE Stream

Every debate message, phase transition, and score result is streamed live to the browser via Server-Sent Events. Watch agents argue in real time.

Cached Replay

Completed runs are cached. Re-running the same model + case replays stored events with proportional delays — no LLM cost, same live experience.

Regression Detection

Automated freshness sweeps re-evaluate models on random cases every 6 days. Score regressions and pass/fail flips are tracked in the analytics dashboard.

Event Flow

Debate EngineEventBusSSE /streamLive UIAnalytics DB