Disproving XAI Myths with Formal Methods -- Initial Results
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Abstract (arXiv)
The advances in Machine Learning (ML) in recent years have been both impressive and far-reaching. However, the deployment of ML models is still impaired by a lack of trust in how the best-performing ML models make predictions. The issue of lack of trust is even more acute in the uses of ML models in high-risk or safety-critical domains. eXplainable artificial intelligence (XAI) is at the core of ongoing efforts for delivering trustworthy AI. Unfortunately, XAI is riddled with critical misconceptions, that foster distrust instead of building trust. This paper details some of the most visible misconceptions in XAI, and shows how formal methods have been used, both to disprove those misconceptions, but also to devise practically effective alternatives.
Key facts. Cited by 12 papers in the map (data through 7 Oct 2026). Builds on 42 of its 89 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 13 May 2023.
Builds on
42 of 89 references.
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30 more
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Built on by
Citing papers per year: 2023: 4; 2024: 3; 2025: 2; 2026: 3.
12 papers.
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- 2023On Formal Feature Attribution and Its Approximationcited by 11
- 2024From SHAP Scores to Feature Importance Scorescited by 8
- 2023Refutation of Shapley Values for XAI -- Additional Evidencecited by 4
- 2026FAME: Formal Abstract Minimal Explanation for Neural Networkscited by 3
- 2024Logic-Based Explainability: Past, Present & Futurecited by 2
- 2023The Pros and Cons of Adversarial Robustnesscited by 1
- 2025Uncovering Bugs in Formal Explainers: A Case Study with PyXAIcited by 1
- 2025Efficient & Correct Predictive Equivalence for Decision Treescited by 0
- 2026Bridging AI and Clinical Reasoning: Abductive Explanations for Alignment on Critical Symptomscited by 0
- 2026Formal Abductive Explanations for Navigating Mental Health Help-Seeking and Diversity in Tech Workplacescited by 0
- 2026Formal Abductive Explanations for Navigating Mental Health Help-Seeking and Diversity in Tech Workplaces14 Mar 2026
- 2026FAME: Formal Abstract Minimal Explanation for Neural Networks11 Mar 2026
- 2026Bridging AI and Clinical Reasoning: Abductive Explanations for Alignment on Critical Symptoms15 Feb 2026
- 2025Uncovering Bugs in Formal Explainers: A Case Study with PyXAI5 Nov 2025
- 2025Efficient & Correct Predictive Equivalence for Decision Trees22 Sep 2025
- 2024Logic-Based Explainability: Past, Present & Future4 Jun 2024
- 2024From SHAP Scores to Feature Importance Scores20 May 2024
- 2024Distance-Restricted Explanations: Theoretical Underpinnings & Efficient Implementation14 May 2024
- 2023The Pros and Cons of Adversarial Robustness18 Dec 2023
- 2023Refutation of Shapley Values for XAI -- Additional Evidence30 Sep 2023
- 2023On Formal Feature Attribution and Its Approximation7 Jul 2023
- 2023Explainability is NOT a Game27 Jun 2023