New approach separates VAE and GP for better molecular optimisation.
problem Optimizing complex structured domains like molecular spaces using VAEs.
method Decouples VAE for structure generation and GP for predictive modelling, combining them with a Bayesian update rule.
result Improves identification of high-potential candidates in molecular optimisation.
Improves Bayesian optimisation for engineering design problems with many variables.
problem Efficiently searching for global minima in high-dimensional design spaces.
method Integrates input and output data to identify a reduced latent subspace using probabilistic partial least squares.
result Significant improvements in convergence to the global minimum compared to existing methods.
LOGAN optimizes GAN training by improving adversarial dynamics.
problem Training GANs is challenging due to delicate adversarial dynamics and potential divergence.
method Integrates natural gradient-based latent optimisation into CS-GAN.
result Significant improvement in GAN training performance, achieving state-of-the-art results.
Optimising discrete data for a desired characteristic using gradient-based methods involves projecting the data into a continuous latent space and carrying out optimisation in this space. Carrying out global optimisation is difficult as optimisers are likely to follow gradients into regions of the latent space that the…
O3 optimizes samples from generative models without extra training.
problem Optimizing specific criteria within rich data distributions.
method Surrogate latent spaces for efficient black-box optimisation.
result Surrogate-space optimisation finds higher-scoring samples.
Bayesian optimisation framework considers only variable orderings to handle ill-conditioned objectives.
problem Bayesian optimisation fails with ill-conditioned or discontinuous objectives.
method Proposes a new framework that considers only the ordering of variables in input and output spaces, fitting a Gaussian process in a latent space.
result Proves optimal performance under the measure of regret for an optimistic strategy in the latent space.
Bayesian optimisation for dynamically adjusting learning rates in machine learning models.
problem Dynamic adjustment of learning rates schedules in machine learning models.
method Probabilistic model based on latent Gaussian processes and auto-/regressive formulation.
result Flexibly adjusts learning rates schedules to abrupt changes of behaviours.
Improved inference for heterogeneous multi-output Gaussian processes using natural gradient optimization.
problem Challenges in adaptive gradient optimization for multi-output Gaussian processes.
method Introducing a fully natural gradient scheme to overcome optimization issues.
result Better local optima solutions and higher test performance rates compared to adaptive gradient methods.
New Bayesian models optimize quantiles and expectiles for stochastic functions.
problem Optimizing for quantiles and expectiles in stochastic functions.
method Proposed variational models and BO strategies for quantile and expectile regression.
result Proposed models and strategies outperform existing methods in heteroscedastic, non-Gaussian settings.
Bayesian optimisation framework for multi-objective decision-making from choice data.
problem Optimizing multi-objective functions via choice judgements.
method Gaussian process prior and novel likelihood model for choice data.
result Proposes a novel Bayesian framework for learning latent functions from choice data.
A Python package solves source duplication in single channel LVMs using spectral regularisation.
problem Source duplication in LVMs hampers their practical use in single channel applications.
method Spectral regularisation term added to address source duplication issue.
result Spectral regularisation framework enables easier investigation and utilisation of LVMs.
Develops a new algorithm for estimating model parameters using interacting particle systems.
problem Estimating parameters of latent variable models.
method Interacting Particle Langevin Algorithm (IPLA) based on Langevin diffusion.
result Nonasymptotic optimisation error bounds for the estimator.
We propose to learn a hierarchical prior in the context of variational autoencoders to avoid the over-regularisation resulting from a standard normal prior distribution. To incentivise an informative latent representation of the data, we formulate the learning problem as a constrained optimisation problem by extending …
ContextBench benchmarks methods for generating linguistically fluent inputs that activate specific latent features in language models.
problem Identifying inputs that trigger specific behaviours or latent features in language models.
method Context modification and benchmarking methods like Evolutionary Prompt Optimisation (EPO) with LLM-assistance and diffusion model inpainting.
result Enhanced methods achieve state-of-the-art performance in balancing elicitation effectiveness and fluency.
This work proposes a new method to train models with deep latent hierarchies using Optimal Transport.
problem Training models with deep latent hierarchies using VAEs often leads to the 'latent variable collapse' issue.
method Proposes a novel approach based on Optimal Transport to train models with deep latent hierarchies.
result The method avoids the 'latent variable collapse' issue and provides better sample generations and latent representation.
A new method reduces variance in training discrete latent variable models.
problem High variance in stochastic gradient estimators for discrete latent variable models.
method Double control variates for score function estimators using Taylor expansions.
result Our method can have lower variance compared to other estimators.
A new estimator improves training of probabilistic models with latent Gaussian variables.
problem Improving gradient estimation for models with latent Gaussian variables.
method Rao-Blackwellised Reparameterisation Gradients (R2-G2)
result R2-G2 consistently yields better performance in models with multiple applications of the reparameterisation trick.
We introduce the Locally Linear Latent Variable Model (LL-LVM), a probabilistic model for non-linear manifold discovery that describes a joint distribution over observations, their manifold coordinates and locally linear maps conditioned on a set of neighbourhood relationships. The model allows straightforward variatio…
Framework fine-tunes foundation models with semi-supervised learning for downstream tasks and latent spaces.
problem Training foundation models with limited labelled data.
method Mutual information decomposition for downstream and latent spaces, semi-supervised fine-tuning.
result Significant improvements in classification tasks under low-labelled conditions.
Motion analysis is used in computer vision to understand the behaviour of moving objects in sequences of images. Optimising the interpretation of dynamic biological systems requires accurate and precise motion tracking as well as efficient representations of high-dimensional motion trajectories so that these can be use…
Improved VAEs learn flat latent spaces for better data similarity.
problem Measuring data similarity in latent spaces using Euclidean metric.
method Extend VAEs to learn flat latent manifolds using Riemannian geometry and regularisation.
result Improved performance on video-tracking benchmarks, nears supervised methods.
Due to the phenomenon of "posterior collapse," current latent variable generative models pose a challenging design choice that either weakens the capacity of the decoder or requires augmenting the objective so it does not only maximize the likelihood of the data. In this paper, we propose an alternative that utilizes t…
Paper optimizes hyperspherical prototypes for better class separation.
problem Previous HPL approaches either lack principled optimisation or are limited to one latent dimension.
method Develops a principled optimisation procedure and uses linear block codes to create well-separated prototypes in various dimensions.
result Optimal prototype placement is characterized with achievable and converse bounds, showing near-optimality.
This paper explores optimising acquisition functions in Bayesian optimisation.
problem Optimising acquisition functions in Bayesian optimisation is challenging due to their non-convex nature.
method The authors derive compositional forms for acquisition functions and use them to recast maximisation as a compositional optimisation problem.
result The compositional approach to maximising acquisition functions shows empirical advantages across various tasks.
Paper revisits Deep Variational Information Bottleneck and proposes a new optimization approach.
problem Limitations of Deep Variational Information Bottleneck in optimizing mutual information.
method Proposes a new optimization approach by circumventing the limitation of requiring both Markov chains during optimisation.
result Shows how to optimise a lower bound for mutual information, circumventing the limitation of requiring both Markov chains.
New framework converts multi-objective to single-objective optimisation.
problem Solving multi-objective optimisation problems.
method Formalises scalarisation into mathematical framework, uses R2 utilities.
result R2 utilities are monotone and submodular, optimised by greedy algorithms.
Unified Bayesian Optimisation for mixed variables improves performance.
problem Efficient optimisation of problems with both categorical and continuous variables.
method Derive value proposals from the Expected Improvement criterion to optimise both categorical and continuous variables under a single acquisition metric.
result Unified approach significantly outperforms existing methods across mixed-variable tasks.
A new method learns priors for Bayesian optimisation to improve performance.
problem Bayesian optimisation tasks often assume strong similarity, which is violated in many cases.
method Replace strong similarity assumption with shape similarity, learn priors for hyperparameters.
result PLeBO and prior transfer find good inputs in fewer evaluations.
We present new intuitions and theoretical assessments of the emergence of disentangled representation in variational autoencoders. Taking a rate-distortion theory perspective, we show the circumstances under which representations aligned with the underlying generative factors of variation of data emerge when optimising…
Proposes a method to evaluate meta-learning performance based on task similarity.
problem Meta-learning performance evaluation ignores task similarity, leading to biased results.
method Generative approach using Latent Dirichlet Allocation to analyze task similarity.
result The proposed method provides an insightful evaluation of meta-learning algorithms, matching common intuition.
Study improves Bayesian optimisation with ensemble transfer learning.
problem Improving sample efficiency in Bayesian optimisation of expensive functions.
method Empirical analysis of ensemble-based transfer learning methods and pipeline components.
result Two components (warm start initialisation and positive weight constraint) improve transfer learning Bayesian optimisation performance.
AdamZ optimiser improves neural network training efficiency.
problem Challenges in optimisation like overshooting and stagnation.
method Dynamic learning rate adjustment based on overshoot and stagnation factors.
result Consistently minimises loss function, improving model performance.
Wind farm layout optimisation tackles space constraints with Bayesian multi-objective approach.
problem Optimizing wind farm layout due to limited space and conflicting objectives.
method Set-based multi-objective Bayesian optimisation using Gaussian process.
result Demonstrates potential of set-based Bayesian multi-objective optimisation for wind farm layout.
Book covers tools for zeroth-order convex optimisation.
problem Zeroth-order convex optimisation.
method Cutting plane methods, interior point methods, continuous exponential weights, gradient descent, online Newton step.
result Improved existing bounds and algorithms.
The use of Variational Autoencoders in different Machine Learning tasks has drastically increased in the last years. They have been developed as denoising, clustering and generative tools, highlighting a large potential in a wide range of fields. Their embeddings are able to extract relevant information from highly dim…
Bayesian optimisation tackles high-dimensional categorical and mixed search spaces.
problem Bayesian optimisation on high-dimensional categorical and mixed search spaces is challenging.
method Combining local optimisation with a tailored kernel design.
result Empirically outperforms current baselines in performance and computational costs.
A new optimisation method efficiently scales Hessian-vector products for neural networks.
problem Challenges in applying second-order quasi-Newton methods due to large Hessian and non-convexity.
method Proposes an optimisation algorithm that asymptotically uses the exact inverse Hessian with modified eigenvalues.
result Demonstrates scalability and comparable performance to other optimisation methods in neural networks.
Bayesian optimisation framework for graph functions.
problem Optimizing functions on graph structures efficiently.
method Learning suitable kernels and local modelling.
result Demonstrated effectiveness on synthetic and real-world graphs.
Bayesian optimisation tackles expensive black-box functions with constraints.
problem Optimizing constrained black-box functions in machine learning and simulation.
method Proposes a new Knowledge Gradient acquisition function for constrained Bayesian optimisation.
result Demonstrates superior performance over four state-of-the-art constrained Bayesian optimisation algorithms.
MTL2L learns to adapt optimisation rules for unseen data.
problem Learners need to adapt to unseen data domains.
method Introduces MTL2L, a context-aware neural optimiser.
result MTL2L can adapt optimisation rules for unseen data.
Real world experiments are expensive, and thus it is important to reach a target in minimum number of experiments. Experimental processes often involve control variables that changes over time. Such problems can be formulated as a functional optimisation problem. We develop a novel Bayesian optimisation framework for s…
Information-theoretic Bayesian optimisation techniques have demonstrated state-of-the-art performance in tackling important global optimisation problems. However, current information-theoretic approaches require many approximations in implementation, introduce often-prohibitive computational overhead and limit the choi…
BDC compresses both sample size and dimensionality of large datasets.
problem Large datasets in both sample size and dimensionality.
method Two-stage framework using Decoded MMD, Reconstruction MMD, and Encoded MMD.
result BDC achieves comparable or superior performance with lower cost and higher compression rates.
Bayesian optimisation algorithm for unknown search spaces with sub-linear regret.
problem Efficient optimisation of expensive black-box functions in unknown search spaces.
method Expands search space over iterations based on a hyperharmonic series, scales to high dimensions.
result Sub-linear regret growth for both algorithms.
Gradient flow autoencoder improves data efficiency over traditional autoencoders.
problem Sub-optimal latent space representations in autoencoders.
method Gradient flow through ODE with adaptive step size for optimization.
result Gradient flow autoencoder achieves higher data efficiency.
New methods improve global optimisation for expensive functions using lookahead strategies.
problem Optimising expensive functions without gradient info in high dimensions.
method Nonmyopic acquisition strategies based on approximate dynamic programming.
result Nonmyopic methods outperform myopic approaches in various applications.
A new framework predicts hidden Markov model regimes online.
problem Efficiently identify hidden Markov model regimes in streaming data.
method Develops a predictive-first optimisation framework for streaming HMMs, approximating the full posterior predictive distribution.
result The method provides competitive prequential performance compared to Online EM and Sequential Monte Carlo.
Deep Optimisation (DO) combines evolutionary search with Deep Neural Networks (DNNs) in a novel way - not for optimising a learning algorithm, but for finding a solution to an optimisation problem. Deep learning has been successfully applied to classification, regression, decision and generative tasks and in this paper…