Self-Evolving World Models for LLM Agent Planning
On the map: World models → World models for language agents
also in 2 more
Abstract (arXiv)
World models offer a principled way to equip long-horizon LLM agents with foresight: predictions of action consequences before execution. However, unreliable foresight can be ignored, misused, or even degrade downstream decision-making. In this paper, we introduce WorldEvolver, a self-evolving world model framework that revises its deployment-time context while keeping the downstream agent and all model parameters frozen. WorldEvolver integrates three modules: (i) Episodic Memory, which exploits real action transitions through retrieval-based simulation; (ii) Semantic Memory, which extracts persistent heuristic rules from prediction-observation mismatches; and (iii) Selective Foresight, which filters low-confidence predictions before integrating them into agent reasoning context. We evaluate WorldEvolver on ALFWorld and ScienceWorld, measuring world model prediction accuracy on Word2World and downstream agent success rate on AgentBoard. Extensive experiments show that WorldEvolver achieves the highest prediction accuracy across three backbones and leads other world model baselines on downstream agent success rate, demonstrating that test-time memory revision enhances both predictive fidelity and planning performance.
Key facts. Cited by 5 papers in the map (data through 7 Oct 2026). Placed in World models for language agents, one of 11 directions in World models. Builds on 46 of its 58 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 29 Jun 2026.
Builds on
46 of 58 references.
Closest ancestors · 12
Same direction, newest first
- 2026Neuro-Symbolic Synergy for World Modeling11 Feb
- 2026DynaWeb: Model-Based Reinforcement Learning of Web Agents29 Jan
- 2026Current Agents Fail to Leverage World Model as Tool for Foresight7 Jan
- 2025From Word to World: Can Large Language Models be Implicit Text-based World Models?21 Dec
- 2025CoEx -- Co-evolving World-model and Exploration29 Jul
- 2025WebEvolver: Enhancing Web Agent Self-Improvement with Coevolving World Model23 Apr
- 2024Understanding World or Predicting Future? A Comprehensive Survey of World Models21 Nov
- 2024Is Your LLM Secretly a World Model of the Internet? Model-Based Planning for Web Agents10 Nov
- 2024Web Agents with World Models: Learning and Leveraging Environment Dynamics in Web Navigation17 Oct
- 2024Agent Planning with World Knowledge Model23 May
- 2023Reasoning with Language Model is Planning with World Model24 May
- 2020ALFWorld: Aligning Text and Embodied Environments for Interactive Learning8 Oct
Other references · 34
- 2022ReAct: Synergizing Reasoning and Acting in Language Modelscited by 8,355
- 2023Reflexion: Language Agents with Verbal Reinforcement Learningcited by 4,064
- 2018World Modelscited by 1,444
- 2017Domain Randomization for Transferring Deep Neural Networks from Simulation to the Real Worldcited by 1,401
- 2023MemGPT: Towards LLMs as Operating Systemscited by 1,295
- 2025Qwen3 Embedding: Advancing Text Embedding and Reranking Through Foundation Modelscited by 1,175
- 2023ExpeL: LLM Agents Are Experiential Learnerscited by 814
- 2019When to Trust Your Model: Model-Based Policy Optimizationcited by 753
- 2023Editing Large Language Models: Problems, Methods, and Opportunitiescited by 367
- 2024AgentBoard: An Analytical Evaluation Board of Multi-turn LLM Agentscited by 319
- 2022ScienceWorld: Is your Agent Smarter than a 5th Grader?cited by 298
- 2023Can We Edit Factual Knowledge by In-Context Learning?cited by 284
22 more
- 2022Aging with GRACE: Lifelong Model Editing with Discrete Key-Value Adaptorscited by 267
- 2024WebRL: Training LLM Web Agents via Self-Evolving Online Curriculum Reinforcement Learningcited by 243
- 2026LeWorldModel: Stable End-to-End Joint-Embedding Predictive Architecture from Pixelscited by 237
- 2025R-Zero: Self-Evolving Reasoning LLM from Zero Datacited by 210
- 2023Synapse: Trajectory-as-Exemplar Prompting with Memory for Computer Controlcited by 180
- 2017Neural Episodic Controlcited by 148
- 2016Model-Free Episodic Controlcited by 100
- 2025Agent0: Unleashing Self-Evolving Agents from Zero Data via Tool-Integrated Reasoningcited by 68
- 2025A Comprehensive Survey on World Models for Embodied AIcited by 65
- 2024AutoManual: Constructing Instruction Manuals by LLM Agents via Interactive Environmental Learningcited by 52
- 2025Contextual Experience Replay for Self-Improvement of Language Agentscited by 46
- 2024On the Multi-turn Instruction Following for Conversational Web Agentscited by 42
- 2026Dr. Zero: Self-Evolving Search Agents without Training Datacited by 39
- 2025GenEnv: Difficulty-Aligned Co-Evolution Between LLM Agents and Environment Simulatorscited by 34
- 2025Guided Self-Evolving LLMs with Minimal Human Supervisioncited by 33
- 2025ReflAct: World-Grounded Decision Making in LLM Agents via Goal-State Reflectioncited by 30
- 2024TRAD: Enhancing LLM Agents with Step-Wise Thought Retrieval and Aligned Decisioncited by 23
- 2024How to Correctly do Semantic Backpropagation on Language-based Agentic Systemscited by 18
- 2024PreAct: Prediction Enhances Agent's Planning Abilitycited by 11
- 2025Co-Evolving Agents: Learning from Failures as Hard Negativescited by 7
- 2026Self-Improving World Modelling with Latent Actionscited by 5
- 2026Reward Prediction with Factorized World Statescited by 2
Built on by
Citing papers per year: 2026: 5.
5 papers.
- 2026Mint-Agent: Introducing Finance-Native Agentic Foundation Modelscited by 0
- 2026DreamLedger: Where to Refuse World-Model Imagination Using Execution-Settled Creditcited by 0
- 2026Dual-Frontier: When Can an Agent Trust Its World Model?cited by 0
- 2026MemoWM: How World Models Change What Agents Need to Remembercited by 0
- 2026Safe, Persistent, and Evolving Agent Harness for Understanding Partially Observable Worldscited by 0
- 2026Safe, Persistent, and Evolving Agent Harness for Understanding Partially Observable Worlds8 Oct 2026
- 2026MemoWM: How World Models Change What Agents Need to Remember7 Oct 2026
- 2026Dual-Frontier: When Can an Agent Trust Its World Model?22 Sep 2026
- 2026DreamLedger: Where to Refuse World-Model Imagination Using Execution-Settled Credit24 Aug 2026
- 2026Mint-Agent: Introducing Finance-Native Agentic Foundation Models17 Aug 2026
Similar, not cited
Close in wording, no citation either way
- 2026MemWM: Memory-Augmented Text-Based World Model
- 2025R-WoM: Retrieval-augmented World Model For Computer-use Agents
- 2026CoMAP: Co-Evolving World Models and Agent Policies for LLM Agents
- 2026Agent-Editing World Model: Rethinking World Modeling for LLM Agents
- 2026Towards a Belief-Based World Model for LLM Agents
- 2026ProPlay: Procedural World Models for Self-Evolving LLM Agents
- 2025Agent2World: Learning to Generate Symbolic World Models via Adaptive Multi-Agent Feedback
- 2026Beyond Next-Observation Prediction: Agent-Authored World Modeling for Sequential Decision Making