Definition
Plain language
The date a model's training data stops, after which it knows nothing about what happened in the world.
As stated in the literature
The point in time past which a model has seen no training data; facts that change after this date become stale, and the model may confidently recall pre-cutoff values as if still current, which is the failure mode temporal-drift probes target.
Also called: training cutoff, cutoff
Why it matters: It matters because users can be misled when a model states outdated facts with full confidence, so knowing the cutoff signals what to double-check.
For example, a model trained through last year may still name last year's champion as the current one, unaware a new season has finished.
Heard on the show
“Before chatting, every participant saw a landing page with a model name, a release year, a knowledge cutoff, and capability scores for reasoning, speed, and creativity.”Episode 205 — The Same AI, Two Labels: How the Pitch Beat the Product in 162 Sessions