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arXiv · 2605.03160

Steering grids for sparse-autoencoder features: when a top-context label names an activation regime rather than a causal axis

Michael A. Riegler·Birk Sebastian Frostelid Torpmann-Hagen
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Abstract

The standard protocol for interpreting sparse-autoencoder (SAE) features labels each feature from its top-activating contexts and validates the label by steering that single feature at a typical magnitude. We argue that this inspects one cell of a larger steering grid, steering condition (single feature, joint feature set, matched random direction) crossed with steering coefficient, and show that other cells carry information that changes the label. On Qwen3-1.7B-Instruct and Gemma-2-2B-it, with the matched-geometry control extended to Llama-3.1-8B-Instruct: (1) features labelled AI self-disclaimer from their top contexts switch to a second surface form under steering, a contemplative voice on Qwen, a collective we-voice on Gemma, so the label names an activation regime, not the causal axis; two anchor features separate genuine mode switches from monotonic response and from breakdown. (2) Three near-orthogonal features that are individually substitutable are jointly necessary for grounded composition: joint suppression collapses unrelated control tasks into placeholder text that single-feature suppression at the same coefficient leaves intact. (3) A matched-geometry random-direction control shows the collapse is direction-pattern-dependent, not magnitude-dependent: at the same residual-stream distortion, feature directions damage unrelated tasks where magnitude-matched random directions do not, with non-overlapping 95% confidence intervals on all three models, including the one SAE trained on the model it is applied to.

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Michael A. Riegler, Birk Sebastian Frostelid Torpmann-Hagen. 2026-05-04. Steering grids for sparse-autoencoder features: when a top-context label names an activation regime rather than a causal axis. https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.03160

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