# InfoDeepSeek: Benchmarking Agentic Information Seeking for Retrieval-Augmented Generation

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.15872 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.15872/

## Key facts

- Cited by 15 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Agentic RAG, agents and memory, one of 15 directions in Retrieval-augmented generation.
- Builds on 41 of its 54 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 21 May 2025.

## Placed in

- Retrieval-augmented generation / [Agentic RAG, agents and memory](https://mlsanity.com/rag/agentic-rag-agents-and-memory/)
- LLM agents and tool use / [Web, search, and research agents](https://mlsanity.com/agents/web-search-and-research-agents/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 41)

- [Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Knowledge-Intensive NLP Tasks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2005.11401/) (2020)
- [DeepSeek-R1: Incentivizing Reasoning Capability in LLMs via Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.12948/) (2025)
- [GPT-4o System Card](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.21276/) (2024)
- [TriviaQA: A Large Scale Distantly Supervised Challenge Dataset for Reading Comprehension](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1705.03551/) (2017)
- [A Survey of Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.18223/) (2023)
- [Emergent Abilities of Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2206.07682/) (2022)
- [A Survey on Large Language Model based Autonomous Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.11432/) (2023)
- [Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Large Language Models: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.10997/) (2023)
- [MS MARCO: A Human Generated MAchine Reading COmprehension Dataset](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1611.09268/) (2016)
- [A Survey on Hallucination in Large Language Models: Principles, Taxonomy, Challenges, and Open Questions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.05232/) (2023)
- [Constructing A Multi-hop QA Dataset for Comprehensive Evaluation of Reasoning Steps](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2011.01060/) (2020)
- [MuSiQue: Multihop Questions via Single-hop Question Composition](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.00573/) (2021)
- [LLM Evaluators Recognize and Favor Their Own Generations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.13076/) (2024)
- [BrowseComp: A Simple Yet Challenging Benchmark for Browsing Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.12516/) (2025)
- [A Survey on RAG Meeting LLMs: Towards Retrieval-Augmented Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.06211/) (2024)
- [Retrieval-Augmented Generation for AI-Generated Content: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.19473/) (2024)
- [FreshLLMs: Refreshing Large Language Models with Search Engine Augmentation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.03214/) (2023)
- [Benchmarking Large Language Models in Retrieval-Augmented Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.01431/) (2023)
- [MultiHop-RAG: Benchmarking Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Multi-Hop Queries](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.15391/) (2024)
- [Agentic Retrieval-Augmented Generation: A Survey on Agentic RAG](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.09136/) (2025)
- [Rethinking with Retrieval: Faithful Large Language Model Inference](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.00303/) (2022)
- [BrowseComp-ZH: Benchmarking Web Browsing Ability of Large Language Models in Chinese](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.19314/) (2025)
- [How Can Recommender Systems Benefit from Large Language Models: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.05817/) (2023)
- [A Critical Evaluation of Evaluations for Long-form Question Answering](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.18201/) (2023)
- [CRAG -- Comprehensive RAG Benchmark](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.04744/) (2024)
- [Evaluating Retrieval Quality in Retrieval-Augmented Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.13781/) (2024)
- [A Survey of AI Agent Protocols](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.16736/) (2025)
- [ReLLa: Retrieval-enhanced Large Language Models for Lifelong Sequential Behavior Comprehension in Recommendation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.11131/) (2023)
- [Towards Open-World Recommendation with Knowledge Augmentation from Large Language Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.10933/) (2023)
- [Retrieval-Augmented Generation for Natural Language Processing: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2407.13193/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 15 of 15)

- [A Survey of Agentic Reasoning for Large Language Models: Towards Recursively Self-Improving and Collective Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.12538/) (2026)
- [A Comprehensive Survey on Reinforcement Learning-based Agentic Search: Foundations, Roles, Optimizations, Evaluations, and Applications](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.16724/) (2025)
- [MMDeepResearch-Bench: A Benchmark for Multimodal Deep Research Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.12346/) (2026)
- [Search-Time Data Contamination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.13180/) (2025)
- [Reinforcement Learning Foundations for Deep Research Systems: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.06733/) (2025)
- [Position: The Real Barrier to LLM Agent Usability is Agentic ROI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.17767/) (2025)
- [APTBench: Benchmarking Agentic Potential of Base LLMs During Pre-Training](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.24397/) (2025)
- [Agentic Environment Engineering for Large Language Models: A Survey of Environment Modeling, Synthesis, Evaluation, and Application](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.12191/) (2026)
- [Do LLM Agents Know How to Ground, Recover, and Assess? A Benchmark for Epistemic Competence in Information-Seeking Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.22391/) (2025)
- [GISA: A Benchmark for General Information-Seeking Assistant](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.08543/) (2026)
- [Is Agentic RAG worth it? An experimental comparison of RAG approaches](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.07711/) (2026)
- [SRR-Judge: Step-Level Rating and Refinement for Enhancing Search-Integrated Reasoning in Search Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.07773/) (2026)
- [Mitigating Hallucination in Large Language Models (LLMs): An Application-Oriented Survey on RAG, Reasoning, and Agentic Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.24476/) (2025)
- [HippoCamp: Benchmarking Contextual Agents on Personal Computers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2604.01221/) (2026)
- [Characterizing Web Search by Conversational LLM Agents: From Search Decisions and Strategies to Results and Responses](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.19244/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) enhances large language models (LLMs) by grounding responses with retrieved information. As an emerging paradigm, Agentic RAG further enhances this process by introducing autonomous LLM agents into the information seeking process. However, existing benchmarks fall short in evaluating such systems, as they are confined to a static retrieval environment with a fixed, limited corpus} and simple queries that fail to elicit agentic behavior. Moreover, their evaluation protocols assess information seeking effectiveness by pre-defined gold sets of documents, making them unsuitable for the open-ended and dynamic nature of real-world web environments. To bridge this gap, we present InfoDeepSeek, a new benchmark with challenging questions designed for assessing agentic information seeking in real-world, dynamic web environments. We propose a systematic methodology for constructing challenging queries satisfying the criteria of determinacy, difficulty, and diversity. Based on this, we develop the first evaluation framework tailored to dynamic agentic information seeking, including fine-grained metrics about the accuracy, utility, and compactness of information seeking outcomes. Through extensive experiments across LLMs, search engines, and question types, InfoDeepSeek reveals nuanced agent behaviors and offers actionable insights for future research.