SHIVIK LABS: TRIDENT, A Step Toward Self-Improving AI Systems Built on Reasoning

PNN
Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], December 24: Shivik Labs, an emerging leader in foundational AI research, announced the release of its latest research paper introducing TRIDENT (Thought-based Reasoning and Improvement through Deep Exploration of Neuronal Trees), a paradigm-shifting framework designed to break the "static intelligence" plateau of modern Large Language Models.
The research demonstrates that AI models can achieve significant leaps in reasoning and problem-solving through autonomous self-improvement--completely bypassing the traditional requirements for human-annotated data, handcrafted reasoning traces, or expensive additional pretraining cycles.

The End of Static Intelligence: TRIDENT's +14.14% Leap on GPQA
Most large language models today improve primarily through scale--more data, larger parameter counts, or additional fine-tuning--rather than through improvements in their reasoning process itself. Their reasoning behaviour is effectively static: they produce answers in a single forward pass or by sampling multiple candidates, but they do not evaluate the quality of the intermediate reasoning paths they explore. As a result, models fail to learn which reasoning trajectories were effective, which were inefficient or misleading, and why a particular solution ultimately succeeded. TRIDENT is built to address this gap. Instead of treating reasoning as a static sequence of tokens, TRIDENT treats it as a structured search problem.
They have open sourced the framework along with a model using the framework on Qwen3-4B, where the Shivik Labs team demonstrated that the TRIDENT framework could drive a performance surge from 28.28% to 42.42% on the GPQA (Graduate-Level Google-Proof Q&A) benchmark. This +14.14 percentage point gain is particularly notable because it was achieved without fine tuning it with more data.
"Self-Correction Loops" -- The model audits its own reasoning paths, identifying logical inconsistencies and refining its internal decision-making process autonomously.
"The industry has been obsessed with scaling--more data, more parameters, more compute. TRIDENT proves that the next frontier isn't just bigger models, but smarter algorithmic improvements over the current increment in model sizes. We've built a system that doesn't just predict the next word; it understands how to navigate complex logic, identify its own errors, and learn from them autonomously."
-- Shivansh Puri, Co-Founder and Head of Research & Engineering, Shivik Labs
A First-Principles Architecture: How TRIDENT Works
TRIDENT moves beyond linear "Chain-of-Thought" reasoning. It treats reasoning as a multi-dimensional search, exploring various logical branches and depth simultaneously. This allows the system to evaluate the validity of different paths in real-time and select the most robust solution without human intervention.
Core Innovations
1.Tree-of-Thoughts (ToT) Reasoning Policy
TRIDENT moves beyond linear Chain-of-Thought reasoning by exploring multiple reasoning paths simultaneously. By structuring reasoning as a tree rather than a single sequence, the framework enables richer exploration of solution strategies and avoids early commitment to suboptimal reasoning paths.
2. GNN-Guided Reasoning Path Evaluation
To guide Tree-of-Thoughts exploration efficiently, TRIDENT employs a Graph Neural Network to evaluate intermediate reasoning states. The GNN assigns promise scores to partial reasoning paths, enabling early pruning of unproductive branches and focusing computation on the most promising reasoning trajectories.
3. Self-Generative Reasoning Loop (SGRL)
TRIDENT introduces an autonomous training loop in which the model generates its own reasoning traces, evaluates both final answers and intermediate reasoning using verifiable rewards, and improves without relying on human-authored chains of thought or preference data. All learning occurs during training, resulting in a standard deployable language model at inference time.
Together, these components allow TRIDENT to improve reasoning through better exploration, evaluation, and learning--without increasing model size or requiring human supervision.
Comprehensive Benchmark Results
TRIDENT v5 demonstrates consistent improvement across multiple reasoning benchmarks:

From Theory to the Field: The Shivik Labs Mission
Shivik Labs is not a traditional academic laboratory. It functions as a deep-tech engineering unit focused on "functional intelligence." The TRIDENT framework is currently being stress-tested within Shivik, the company's flagship platform for construction execution and control.
"Every powerful technology shapes who holds control. For years, we used systems where that control lived somewhere else. That was acceptable when we were learning, but not anymore. By working on real-world problems, we are rebuilding the ability to create intelligence here. Our conviction is simple: India should stand among those who define AI, not those who depend on it."
-- Abhisek Khandelwal, Founder of Shivik Labs
Khandelwal emphasizes that India's unique scale and logistical complexity serve as the ultimate proving ground. "Systems that can reason and operate effectively here are, by design, more resilient than those built in sanitized, lab-only environments."
Research Paper: https://www.shivik.in/shivik-labs/trident
Research Repository: https://huggingface.co/shiviktech/Trident
What's Next for Shivik Labs?
The publication of this paper marks only the beginning for Shivik Labs. The team is currently focused on working towards building indigenous reasoning AI model with the target of releasing it by early next year. They have already built the architecture and prototype and are now moving towards production ready model. They are aiming for releasing a small 2B model early next year (Q1-2026) with a target of building the world's most efficient & powerful model by the end of 2026
To accelerate the adoption of this framework, Shivik Labs is launching Collaborative Pilot Programs specifically for organizations facing "reasoning-heavy" challenges--such as complex logistics, forensic diagnosis, or strategic forecasting--where traditional AI currently falls short. This initiative is paired with a deep commitment to transparency and the democratization of innovation. Shivik Labs is making the TRIDENT research paper and key model artifacts publicly available on Hugging Face, inviting the global AI community of researchers, engineers, and industry leaders to explore the architecture and contribute to the future of autonomous, self-improving intelligence.
About Shivik Labs
Shivik Labs is a deep-tech research and engineering unit dedicated to building foundational intelligence architectures. Focused on the intersection of reasoning-centric models, Graph Neural Networks, and hardware-software integration, Shivik Labs develops autonomous systems that operate reliably in the real world.
The Labs is powered by a high-octane group of researchers where 90% of the team is under the age of 25. This young, agile unit is unburdened by legacy AI paradigms, allowing them to move faster and think differently about the future of self-improving intelligence.
Media Contact
Shivik Labs
Email: hello@shivik.in
Website: www.shivik.in
Paper Authors
Shivansh Puri, Abhisek Khandelwal, Vedant Joshi, Akash Yadav
Shivik Labs
(ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.)