# From Particles to Agents: Hallucination as a Metric for Cognitive Friction in Spatial Simulation

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.21977 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.21977/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 4 of its 15 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 29 Jan 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [The Rise and Potential of Large Language Model Based Agents: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.07864/) (2023)
- [A Survey on Large Language Model-Based Game Agents](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.02039/) (2024)
- [SocioVerse: A World Model for Social Simulation Powered by LLM Agents and A Pool of 10 Million Real-World Users](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.10157/) (2025)
- [Societal, Economic, Ethical and Legal Challenges of the Digital Revolution: From Big Data to Deep Learning, Artificial Intelligence, and Manipulative Technologies](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1504.03751/) (2015)

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [Silent Failures in Physical AI: A Literature Review of Runtime Action Authorization for Autonomous Systems](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.00090/) (2026)
- [Defining AI Agents: A Compendium of Criteria, Metrics, and Benchmarks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.11018/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Traditional architectural simulations (e.g. Computational Fluid Dynamics, evacuation, structural analysis) model elements as deterministic physics-based "particles" rather than cognitive "agents". To bridge this, we introduce Agentic Environmental Simulations, where Large Multimodal generative models actively predict the next state of spatial environments based on semantic expectation. Drawing on examples from accessibility-oriented AR pipelines and multimodal digital twins, we propose a shift from chronological time-steps to Episodic Spatial Reasoning, where simulations advance through meaningful, surprisal-triggered events. Within this framework we posit AI hallucinations as diagnostic tools. By formalizing the Cognitive Friction (Cf) it is possible to reveal "Phantom Affordances", i.e. semiotic ambiguities in built space. Finally, we challenge current HCI paradigms by treating environments as dynamic cognitive partners and propose a human-centered framework of cognitive orchestration for designing AI-driven simulations that preserve autonomy, affective clarity, and cognitive integrity.