# MiraBench: Evaluating Action-Conditioned Reliability in Robotic World Models

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.29360 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.29360/

## Key facts

- Cited by 9 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Placed in Embodied and robot world models, one of 11 directions in World models.
- Builds on 48 of its 52 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 28 May 2026.

## Placed in

- World models / [Embodied and robot world models](https://mlsanity.com/wm/embodied-and-robot-world-models/)

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 48)

- [RT-2: Vision-Language-Action Models Transfer Web Knowledge to Robotic Control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.15818/) (2023)
- [SAM 2: Segment Anything in Images and Videos](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2408.00714/) (2024)
- [Wan: Open and Advanced Large-Scale Video Generative Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.20314/) (2025)
- [InternVL3: Exploring Advanced Training and Test-Time Recipes for Open-Source Multimodal Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2504.10479/) (2025)
- [VBench: Comprehensive Benchmark Suite for Video Generative Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2311.17982/) (2023)
- [Dream to Control: Learning Behaviors by Latent Imagination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1912.01603/) (2019)
- [Domain Randomization for Transferring Deep Neural Networks from Simulation to the Real World](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1703.06907/) (2017)
- [Octo: An Open-Source Generalist Robot Policy](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.12213/) (2024)
- [Mastering Diverse Domains through World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.04104/) (2023)
- [Towards Accurate Generative Models of Video: A New Metric & Challenges](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1812.01717/) (2018)
- [GR00T N1: An Open Foundation Model for Generalist Humanoid Robots](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.14734/) (2025)
- [Mastering Atari with Discrete World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.02193/) (2020)
- [WorldSimBench: Towards Video Generation Models as World Simulators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2410.18072/) (2024)
- [Cosmos World Foundation Model Platform for Physical AI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.03575/) (2025)
- [Open X-Embodiment: Robotic Learning Datasets and RT-X Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.08864/) (2023)
- [DROID: A Large-Scale In-The-Wild Robot Manipulation Dataset](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.12945/) (2024)
- [When to Trust Your Model: Model-Based Policy Optimization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1906.08253/) (2019)
- [Genie: Generative Interactive Environments](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.15391/) (2024)
- [What Matters in Learning from Offline Human Demonstrations for Robot Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.03298/) (2021)
- [Learning Dexterous In-Hand Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1808.00177/) (2018)
- [BridgeData V2: A Dataset for Robot Learning at Scale](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.12952/) (2023)
- [GAIA-1: A Generative World Model for Autonomous Driving](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.17080/) (2023)
- [CLEVRER: CoLlision Events for Video REpresentation and Reasoning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1910.01442/) (2019)
- [Learning Interactive Real-World Simulators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.06114/) (2023)
- [Temporal Difference Learning for Model Predictive Control](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.04955/) (2022)
- [Vista: A Generalizable Driving World Model with High Fidelity and Versatile Controllability](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.17398/) (2024)
- [EvalCrafter: Benchmarking and Evaluating Large Video Generation Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.11440/) (2023)
- [Transformers are Sample-Efficient World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2209.00588/) (2022)
- [VBench-2.0: Advancing Video Generation Benchmark Suite for Intrinsic Faithfulness](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.21755/) (2025)
- [Diffusion for World Modeling: Visual Details Matter in Atari](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.12399/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 9 of 9)

- [WorldExam: Benchmarking World Models from Apparent Appearance to Inherent Reactivity](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.02603/) (2026)
- [WorldSimProbe: Diagnosing Simulator Faithfulness in Action-Conditioned World Models for Embodied Manipulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.09298/) (2026)
- [Do Robotic World Models Really Follow Actions? Diagnosing and Aligning Action-Conditioned Generation for Policy Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.24885/) (2026)
- [World Models for Embodied Intelligence: From Plausible to Controllable to Actionable](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.16697/) (2026)
- [Intervention Granularity Matters: Coherent Treatment Bundles in Counterfactual Simulation with Clinical World Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.21906/) (2026)
- [HappyWorld-Bench](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.24308/) (2026)
- [Beyond Visual Quality: A Study of Test-Time Planning with World Action Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.24745/) (2026)
- [RoboCoach: World Models as Active Coaches for Compositional Robot Skills](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2609.39685/) (2026)
- [Beyond Successful Robot Demonstrations: Learning from Human Interactions and Modeling Failure Dynamics](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2610.13522/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Action-conditioned world models are increasingly used as scalable simulators for robot learning, yet current evaluations provide limited evidence that their predictions are reliable under the actions they condition on. Existing benchmarks largely emphasize visual fidelity, leaving unclear whether predicted futures are physically plausible, faithful to commanded actions, and calibrated to failure when actions should not succeed. We introduce textscMiraBench, a hierarchical benchmark that defines action-conditioned reliability as a core evaluation target for robotic world models. MiraBench decomposes this target into three progressively demanding levels: Physics Adherence, which evaluates reference-free physical consistency; Action-Following Fidelity, which measures whether predictions respect task-relevant action inputs; and Optimism Bias Detection, which probes the tendency to predict successful outcomes under failure-inducing actions. To support this evaluation, we curate a human-annotated corpus with over 16,000 judgments across tasks, failure categories, and leading world models. We evaluate 12 representative model configurations spanning vector-conditioned robotic world models, text-conditioned generative world models, open-weight systems, closed-source systems, and multiple model scales. Across this broad model landscape, MiraBench reveals three central findings: visual fidelity is a poor proxy for action fidelity; increasing model scale does not reliably improve action following; and optimism bias is pervasive across current systems. By shifting evaluation from appearance to action-conditioned reliability, MiraBench provides a diagnostic foundation for assessing and improving robotic world models as faithful simulators.
