Reward Structure Shapes the Interaction Between Episodic Exploration and Neural Memory in Reinforcement Learning

Jai Malegaonkar, Rohan Patil, Henrik I. Christensen|August 5, 2026arXiv

Key Takeaway

Exploration bonuses and memory architectures aren't independent tools—their effectiveness depends entirely on reward structure.

This paper reveals how reward structure fundamentally shapes whether exploration bonuses help or hurt reinforcement learning agents.