Abstract
Behavior Foundation Models (BFMs) are emerging as a paradigm for translating human intentions into executable humanoid behaviors. As these models evolve beyond behavior generation toward general-purpose behavioral systems, a fundamental question arises: can they be reliably steered according to user intentions? In this paper, we introduce the concept of behavioral steerability, defined as the ability of BFMs to faithfully generate behaviors that satisfy user-specified intentions. To study this capability, we present RoboSteer, the first benchmark for behavioral steerability in BFMs. RoboSteer organizes behavioral steerability into a three-level hierarchy-Conditional Steering, Constraint Steering, and Compositional Steering-and establishes a unified evaluation framework supported by a large-scale multimodal motion corpus. Using RoboSteer, we conduct the first large-scale empirical study of behavioral steerability across 9 existing BFMs. We view behavioral steerability as more than a capability for controlling motion: it concerns how embodied systems translate human intentions into purposeful actions. We hope RoboSteer will advance research on intention realization as a foundation for general-purpose embodied intelligence.
Keywords
Publication details
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Cite this article
APA 7
Gao, M., Yan, Z., Liu, J., Bu, W., Chen, X., Wang, Q., Su, Y., Tang, S., Xiao, J., Zhuang, Y., Chua, T. S., & Li, J. (2026). Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models
MLA 9
Gao, Minghe, et al. "Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models.
Chicago (author–date)
Gao, Minghe, Zhanxi Yan, Jiahui Liu, Wendong Bu, Xiaoting Chen, Qizhou Wang, Yi Su, Siliang Tang, Jun Xiao, Yueting Zhuang, Tat-Seng Chua, and Juncheng Li. 2026. "Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models." https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models.
Harvard
Gao, M., Yan, Z., Liu, J., Bu, W., Chen, X., Wang, Q., Su, Y., Tang, S., Xiao, J., Zhuang, Y., Chua, T. S. and Li, J. (2026) 'Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models', Available at: https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models.
Vancouver
Gao M, Yan Z, Liu J, Bu W, Chen X, Wang Q, et al. Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models. https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models
IEEE
M. Gao, Z. Yan, J. Liu, W. Bu, X. Chen, Q. Wang, Y. Su, S. Tang, J. Xiao, Y. Zhuang, T. S. Chua, and J. Li, "Benchmarking Behavioral Steerability in Behavior Foundation Models," https://omanscience.com/en/articles/benchmarking-behavioral-steerability-in-behavior-foundation-models.