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Challenge 05 · Tree of Thoughts Prompting

Tree of Thoughts Strategist ⭐

⏱ 20 minutes 🏆 150 points ⭐ Expert
✓
Zero-Shot
✓
Few-Shot
✓
CoT
✓
Self-Con.
5
ToT

What is Tree of Thoughts Prompting?

Tree of Thoughts (ToT) goes beyond a single chain of reasoning by making the model explore multiple solution branches in parallel, evaluate each branch, eliminate weak paths (prune), and select the best one. Unlike CoT which is linear (one path), ToT is a tree — the model can backtrack, compare, and choose the strongest route to an answer. This is powerful for complex strategic decisions.

Scenario

A startup founder needs a strategic AI advisor that doesn't just react — it explores. It generates multiple approaches, evaluates each one, eliminates dead ends, and arrives at the strongest strategy. Not a single chain of thought — a whole tree.

Your Task

Build a PartyRock app called "The Strategy Tree" that forces the model through this exact 5-stage tree structure:

1
Branch — Generate exactly 3 distinct strategic approaches
2
Evaluate — Score each approach 1–10 with clear reasoning
3
Prune — Eliminate the weakest approach and explain why
4
Deep-Dive — Expand the winning approach with actionable detail
5
Recommend — Final recommendation with full justification

Rules

  • Your system prompt must explicitly define all 5 tree stages
  • The output must show all 3 branches — even the eliminated ones. The exploration is the point.
  • Final recommendation appears only after the full tree has been walked
  • The scoring (Stage 2) must have reasoning — not arbitrary numbers

Test Problem (Use This for Testing)

A 2-year-old EdTech startup has 10,000 users but zero revenue. They have a free product that people love. They need to monetize within 6 months without losing their user base. What should they do?
⭐
Bonus +10 points: Add a second AI widget that runs the same problem through a simple zero-shot prompt, placed side by side — proving why ToT produces a richer, more considered answer.

How to Build This on PartyRock — Step by Step

STEP 1 — Create the app 1. Go to partyrock.aws → "Build your own app" 2. Describe it as: "A strategic advisor that explores multiple approaches and selects the best" 3. Clear auto-generated widgets and build manually
STEP 2 — Add widgets 1. "+ Add widget" → "User Input" → label: "Enter your business problem" 2. "+ Add widget" → "AI Generation" — your full ToT strategist
STEP 3 — Write your ToT system prompt (the hard part) Your system prompt MUST define all 5 stages explicitly: Stage 1 — BRANCH: Generate exactly 3 distinct strategic approaches Stage 2 — EVALUATE: Score each approach 1–10 with reasoning Stage 3 — PRUNE: Eliminate the weakest, explain why Stage 4 — DEEP-DIVE: Expand the winning approach in detail Stage 5 — RECOMMEND: Final recommendation with full justification Be prescriptive — tell the model it must complete every stage and must show all branches even the eliminated ones. Connect User Prompt to your input widget (@input)
STEP 4 — Set Model, Temperature & Top P ToT needs your strongest model. Temperature should allow creative branching but not be so high that evaluation becomes incoherent. • Model: Claude 3.5 Sonnet recommended • Temperature: 0.5–0.7 for balanced exploration • Top P: consider diversity needed for branch generation ⚠️ Auto-read from JSON. Make deliberate, justified choices.
STEP 5 — Test & Export Test with the EdTech monetization problem. Verify all 5 stages appear in output. Mac: Cmd+K | Windows: Ctrl+K → exports JSON Copy share URL and submit both below.
💡 Your model, temperature, and Top P are extracted from the JSON automatically.

Scoring Breakdown (150 pts + 10 bonus)

CriterionPoints
Correct ToT structure (all 5 stages visible in output)25
All 3 branches shown with scores and reasoning25
Quality of evaluation logic — not arbitrary scoring20
Compelling and realistic business use case15
Model choice + written justification25
Temperature value + written justification20
Top P value + written justification20
Bonus: zero-shot comparison widget+10
Total150 (+10)

Submit Your Entry

Mac: Cmd+K · Windows: Ctrl+K in PartyRock to export.

Why did you make these choices? (Optional — but worth 65 pts!)

💡 Your model name, temperature, and Top P are read automatically from the JSON file you upload. You only need to tell us why you chose them.
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