Page 6 of 8~104 min topic

Serving Large Language Models

Evaluate with evidence

Measure LLM serving with denominators, slices, and gates chosen before seeing results on the multi-tenant chat API.

~13 min this pageEvaluation

1Learn the idea

Read

Metrics

See it

Training time vs chat time

Training

Huge dataHeavy computeWeights

Inference

Your promptFrozen modelReply

Training = long study · Inference = quick answer from what it already learned

Track for LLM serving: tokens/sec, p95 TTFT, p95 TPOT, queue time, OOM rate, cost/1M tokens. Report fractions like 36/40, not vague quality adjectives. Segment by language, plan tier, document length, or other slices that matter for the multi-tenant chat API.

Read

Protocol

Freeze inputs and neighboring versions while evaluating LLM serving. Change one control. Pair results case by case on the multi-tenant chat API. Define hard gates (severe errors, privacy, latency) before the bake-off. Use deterministic checks where possible; humans for nuance; model judges only with calibration against gold.

Numeric reminder for LLM serving: approximate weight memory for 7B parameters at 16 bits = 7B × 2 bytes ≈ 14 GB, before KV cache and runtime overhead

Read

Make it operational

Resist adding a twelfth metric before the first three for LLM serving on the multi-tenant chat API have owners. This workload improves faster when a small scorecard is trusted than when a warehouse of unused plots exists.

Also pin one numeric memory from this LLM serving chapter: approximate weight memory for 7B parameters at 16 bits = 7B × 2 bytes ≈ 14 GB, before KV cache and runtime overhead That number is not decoration; it is a template for how claims about LLM serving on the multi-tenant chat API should look in design docs. Scoped specifically to LLM serving / multi-tenant chat API / evaluation.

Read

Common mix-ups

People confuse LLM serving with neighboring buzzwords when debugging the multi-tenant chat API. Before changing prompts, ask whether the broken stage was evidence gathering, the LLM serving judgment itself, validation, or the product action. Fixing the wrong stage creates folklore (“we tried LLM serving and it failed”) that blocks the next team on the multi-tenant chat API. Scoped specifically to LLM serving / multi-tenant chat API / evaluation.

Read

Rehearsal (serving-llms/evaluation)

Write a five-line artifact for this page: goal, inputs, check, owner, stop rule. Invent one fluent failure that the check would catch. Keep details specific to serving llms rather than generic AI advice.

Read

Rehearsal (serving-llms/evaluation)

Write a five-line artifact for this page: goal, inputs, check, owner, stop rule. Invent one fluent failure that the check would catch. Keep details specific to serving llms rather than generic AI advice.

Read

Rehearsal (serving-llms/evaluation)

Write a five-line artifact for this page: goal, inputs, check, owner, stop rule. Invent one fluent failure that the check would catch. Keep details specific to serving llms rather than generic AI advice.

Read

Rehearsal (serving-llms/evaluation)

Write a five-line artifact for this page: goal, inputs, check, owner, stop rule. Invent one fluent failure that the check would catch. Keep details specific to serving llms rather than generic AI advice.

Go deeper

Before you start

Why this matters

A demo of the multi-tenant chat API looks great on three hand-picked examples of LLM serving. What does that demo refuse to tell you?

In the wild

See how this idea shows up as a product and a company — then come back to the lesson. Skills transfer across vendors.

Check your understanding

Page assessment

Answer from memory. Completion is saved from this evidence, not from opening the next page.

1. What is one idea from this page you would apply, and what evidence would you check?

All responses are required.