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arXiv research

A locally-built, LLM-digested index of recent arXiv papers in quant finance, geometry/topology, and statistical ML — keyword search served straight from SQLite on this machine.

168,657 papers · 148 categories

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219437656874 · Jun 202019922001200920172026
48 results for optimistic algorithms

We show how to take any two parameter-free online learning algorithms with different regret guarantees and obtain a single algorithm whose regret is the minimum of the two base algorithms. Our method is embarrassingly simple: just add the iterates. This trick can generate efficient algorithms that adapt to many norms s…

2019-02-24abs ↗pdf ↗

Optimistic NPG improves policy optimization in online RL with efficient sample complexity.

problem Limited theoretical understanding of policy optimization, especially in online RL.
method Combines natural policy gradient with optimistic policy evaluation.
result Achieves optimal dimension dependence sample complexity for learning near-optimal policies.

Optimistic initialisation is an effective strategy for efficient exploration in reinforcement learning (RL). In the tabular case, all provably efficient model-free algorithms rely on it. However, model-free deep RL algorithms do not use optimistic initialisation despite taking inspiration from these provably efficient …

2020-02-26abs ↗pdf ↗

New algorithm reduces regret in sequential decision-making problems.

problem Balancing exploration and exploitation in online sequential decision problems.
method Variational Bayesian optimistic sampling (VBOS) for optimizing policies.
result VBOS achieves ildeO(AT) ilde O(\sqrt{AT}) Bayesian regret for stochastic multi-armed bandits.

Proposes H-UCRL for efficient model-based RL with sublinear regret.

problem Greedy policy exploration in model-based RL ignores epistemic uncertainty.
method Reparameterizes plausible models, hallucinates control, augments input space, solves with greedy planners.
result H-UCRL achieves provably sublinear regret for Gaussian Process models.

Efficiently solves exploration-exploitation in LQR using Lagrangian relaxation.

problem Exploration-exploitation dilemma in linear quadratic regulator (LQR) setting.
method Relax optimistic optimization into a constrained extended LQR problem, then solve using Riccati equations.
result Computes εε-optimistic controller efficiently with O(log(1/ε))O\big(\log(1/ε)\big) Riccati equations.

Optimistic method adapted for faster convex-concave min-max problems.

problem Solving convex-concave min-max optimization problems efficiently.
method Adaptive, line search-free second-order methods combining optimistic updates and second-order information.
result Achieves optimal convergence rate without line search or backtracking.

Optimistic PPO variant solves linear MDPs with improved regret bound.

problem Understanding theoretical limits of PPO in linear MDPs.
method Proposes an optimistic variant of PPO for episodic adversarial linear MDPs with full-information feedback.
result Establishes a ildeO(d3/4H2K3/4) ilde{\mathcal{O}}(d^{3/4}H^2K^{3/4}) regret bound.

Kernel-based function approximation improves reinforcement learning performance.

problem Average reward reinforcement learning in infinite horizon settings.
method Optimistic algorithm based on kernel ridge regression.
result No-regret performance guarantees and confidence intervals for kernel-based predictions.

Optimistic RL algorithms are simplified for deep RL with competitive performance.

problem Achieving accurate optimism in model-based RL for large-scale problems.
method Interpreting scalable optimistic model-based algorithms as solving a tractable noise augmented MDP.
result Competitive regret bound of ildeO(SHAT) ilde{\mathcal{O}}( |\mathcal{S}|H\sqrt{|\mathcal{A}| T } ) for Gaussian noise augmentation.

Algorithm converges to Nash equilibria in competitive games.

problem Finding Nash equilibria in decentralized, competitive Markov games.
method Decentralized Optimistic Gradient Descent/Ascent with a critic.
result Converges to the set of Nash equilibria under self-play.

Optimistic Hedge achieves optimal regret bounds in two-player zero-sum games.

problem Achieving optimal regret bounds for optimistic Hedge in two-player zero-sum games.
method Refined regret analysis and optimization problem formulation.
result Optimistic Hedge achieves O(logmlogn)O(\sqrt{\log m \log n}) regret bounds, matching upper and lower bounds.

Unified framework for model-based RL with sample complexity guarantees.

problem Designing efficient posterior sampling methods for model-based RL.
method Optimistic posterior sampling, Hellinger distance reduction, data likelihood measurement.
result Unified algorithms with state-of-the-art sample complexity guarantees.

Optimistic actor-critic tackles linear MDPs with parametric policies.

problem Theoretical limitations of existing actor-critic methods for linear MDPs.
method Proposes an optimistic actor-critic framework with parametric log-linear policies and approximate Thompson sampling.
result Achieves state-of-the-art sample complexity in both on-policy and off-policy settings.

This paper establishes that optimistic algorithms attain gap-dependent and non-asymptotic logarithmic regret for episodic MDPs. In contrast to prior work, our bounds do not suffer a dependence on diameter-like quantities or ergodicity, and smoothly interpolate between the gap dependent logarithmic-regret, and the $\wid…

2019-05-09abs ↗pdf ↗

Optimistic algorithm reduces regret and constraint violations in online convex optimization with adversarial constraints.

problem Online convex optimization with adversarial constraints.
method Improved algorithm using accurate predictions of loss and constraint functions.
result Improved bounds on regret and cumulative constraint violations.

Develops new algorithms for solving root-finding problems in large-scale settings.

problem Solving nonlinear equations in large-scale settings.
method Randomized block-coordinate optimistic gradient algorithms.
result Achieves convergence rates of O(1/k)\mathcal{O}(1/k) and O(1/k2)\mathcal{O}(1/k^2) for root-finding problems.

We consider the problem of online planning in a Markov Decision Process when given only access to a generative model, restricted to open-loop policies - i.e. sequences of actions - and under budget constraint. In this setting, the Open-Loop Optimistic Planning (OLOP) algorithm enjoys good theoretical guarantees but is …

2019-04-09abs ↗pdf ↗

Model-based Bayesian Reinforcement Learning (BRL) allows a found formalization of the problem of acting optimally while facing an unknown environment, i.e., avoiding the exploration-exploitation dilemma. However, algorithms explicitly addressing BRL suffer from such a combinatorial explosion that a large body of work r…

2012-06-18abs ↗pdf ↗

We discuss the relative merits of optimistic and randomized approaches to exploration in reinforcement learning. Optimistic approaches presented in the literature apply an optimistic boost to the value estimate at each state-action pair and select actions that are greedy with respect to the resulting optimistic value f…

2017-06-13abs ↗pdf ↗

Novel approach to universal online learning for bounded losses, closing open problems.

problem Characterizing processes for universal online learning under non-i.i.d. conditions.
method Characterization of processes admitting strong and weak universal learning, introduction of optimistically universal learning rule.
result Introduction of a novel 1NN algorithm that is optimistically universal for bounded losses.

We address the issue of limit cycling behavior in training Generative Adversarial Networks and propose the use of Optimistic Mirror Decent (OMD) for training Wasserstein GANs. Recent theoretical results have shown that optimistic mirror decent (OMD) can enjoy faster regret rates in the context of zero-sum games. WGANs …

2017-10-31abs ↗pdf ↗

PROPO tackles non-stationary MDPs with efficient policy optimization.

problem Non-stationary MDPs with varying reward and transition kernels.
method PROPO, a periodic restarted optimistic policy optimization algorithm with sliding-window-based policy evaluation and improvement.
result PROPO achieves near-optimal performance in non-stationary MDPs.

Optimistic estimate predicts best fitting performance of nonlinear models.

problem Evaluating the potential of nonlinear models in fitting.
method Proposes an optimistic estimate to quantify the smallest sample size for fitting nonlinear models.
result Predicts specific subsets of targets that can be fitted at overparameterization.

New algorithm reduces reinforcement learning regret to sqrt(T) without strong dynamics assumptions.

problem Infinite-horizon average-reward reinforcement learning with linear MDPs.
method Approximate by discounted-reward MDPs and apply optimistic value iteration.
result Achieves O(sqrt(T)) regret with polynomial complexity.

We propose a new variant of AMSGrad, a popular adaptive gradient based optimization algorithm widely used for training deep neural networks. Our algorithm adds prior knowledge about the sequence of consecutive mini-batch gradients and leverages its underlying structure making the gradients sequentially predictable. By …

2019-03-04abs ↗pdf ↗

Optimistic algorithm reduces regret in non-stationary linear MDPs.

problem Efficient learning in non-stationary linear MDPs with evolving reward and transition.
method OPT-WLSVI, an optimistic model-free algorithm using exponential weights.
result Achieves a regret bound of O~(d5/4H2Δ1/4K3/4)\widetilde{\mathcal{O}}(d^{5/4}H^2 Δ^{1/4} K^{3/4}).

We consider the problem of minimizing a smooth convex function by reducing the optimization to computing the Nash equilibrium of a particular zero-sum convex-concave game. Zero-sum games can be solved using online learning dynamics, where a classical technique involves simulating two no-regret algorithms that play agai…

2018-07-27abs ↗pdf ↗