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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.

168,982 papers · 148 categories

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133266398531 · May 202619922001200920172026
48 results for reward structure

Study shows mutual information can reward structure learning agents without expert systems.

problem Designing rewards for structure learning agents in natural language environments.
method Revisited Information Theory of unsupervised induction of phrase-structure grammars, using random sets of linguistic samples.
result Empirical evidence that simulated semantic structures can be distinguished from random ones by mutual information among their constituents.

New IRL algorithm identifies optimal reward and policy from expert demonstrations.

problem Understanding reward functions from expert demonstrations with neural networks.
method Two-timescale single-loop IRL algorithm for neural network parameterized rewards.
result First IRL algorithm with non-asymptotic convergence guarantee and global optimality in neural network settings.

Study reward-free RL in non-linear settings, improving efficiency and removing assumptions.

problem Improving sample efficiency in reward-free reinforcement learning for non-linear function approximation.
method Proposed RFOLIVE algorithm for minimal structural assumptions, analyzed hardness results for reward-free and reward-aware exploration.
result Statistical efficiency and hardness results under various structural assumptions, no need for reachability or explorability assumptions.

PixL2R maps natural language to pixel-based rewards for RL, improving sample efficiency.

problem Sparse reward settings in RL limit applicability to complex problems.
method Directly maps natural language descriptions to pixel-based rewards for guiding RL.
result Language-based rewards significantly improve sample efficiency in policy learning.

Paper introduces PRMs to learn non-Markovian stochastic rewards for reinforcement learning.

problem Lack of structured representation for non-Markovian stochastic rewards in reinforcement learning.
method Introduces probabilistic reward machines (PRMs) and presents an algorithm to learn them from decision processes.
result Algorithm proves correct and convergent for learning PRMs from decision processes.

A model learns rewards from diverse demonstrations for structurally similar tasks.

problem Difficulty in learning reward functions from demonstrations in real-world applications.
method Deep latent variable model that infers rewards from heterogeneous demonstrations of related tasks.
result Model can infer rewards for new tasks from a single demonstration.

Proposes a method to boost deep reinforcement learning with sparse rewards.

problem Challenges in learning complex behaviors with long horizons and sparse rewards.
method Predictive coding for reward shaping.
result Achieves better learning by providing reward signals that understand environment dynamics and emphasize useful features.

We consider stochastic multi-armed bandit problems with complex actions over a set of basic arms, where the decision maker plays a complex action rather than a basic arm in each round. The reward of the complex action is some function of the basic arms' rewards, and the feedback observed may not necessarily be the rewa…

2013-11-03abs ↗pdf ↗

Paper simplifies complex AI exploration by predicting future rewards.

problem Training machines to optimally gather complex information.
method Developed a denser reward structure using cross-value to decouple exploration and exploitation.
result Demonstrated successful learning of challenging tasks without shaping or bonuses.

Enhances reward specification in RL with a novel language-based approach.

problem Reward specification in RL can lead to unintended, potentially harmful behaviours.
method Developed a novel class of language-based Reward Machines using RML's built-in memory.
result Can specify non-regular, non-Markovian reward functions for complex tasks.

Adaptive policies solve a linear program to maximize rewards while minimizing costs in sales with discounts.

problem Maximizing rewards in sales with discounts while considering costs.
method Solves a linear program based on upper-confidence estimates of conversion probabilities.
result Achieves a regret bound of the typical order (OPT/BB) T\sqrt{T}, where B is the total budget allowed.

Thompson Sampling bounds for contextual bandits with sub-Gaussian rewards.

problem Improving the performance of Thompson Sampling in contextual bandits with sub-Gaussian rewards.
method Proved comprehensive bounds on Thompson Sampling expected cumulative regret based on mutual information and lifted information ratio for sub-Gaussian rewards.
result Explicit regret bounds for various contextual bandit scenarios.

We consider an adversarial online learning setting where a decision maker can choose an action in every stage of the game. In addition to observing the reward of the chosen action, the decision maker gets side observations on the reward he would have obtained had he chosen some of the other actions. The observation str…

2011-06-13abs ↗pdf ↗

Designers of AI agents often iterate on the reward function in a trial-and-error process until they get the desired behavior, but this only guarantees good behavior in the training environment. We propose structuring this process as a series of queries asking the user to compare between different reward functions. Thus…

2018-09-09abs ↗pdf ↗

Study adapts combinatorial semi-bandit for piecewise stationary, causally related rewards.

problem Nonstationary environment with changing base arms' distributions and causal relationships.
method Upper Confidence Bound (UCB) algorithm with change-point detector and group restart strategy.
result Regret upper bound reflecting effects of structural and distribution changes.

New complexity measure MEHC refines MDP upper bounds and rewards informativeness.

problem Refining complexity measures for MDPs and understanding reward informativeness.
method Introducing MEHC, a new complexity measure that tightens MDP diameter by accounting for reward structure.
result MEHC replaces diameter in upper bounds on optimal value span and UCRL2-like algorithms' regret.

A new algorithm tackles delayed combinatorial semi-bandit with causal relations.

problem Optimizing decisions in a non-stationary environment with delayed and causally related rewards.
method Formalized as a non-stationary delayed combinatorial semi-bandit problem, the approach models causal relations with a directed graph in a stationary structural equation model. The agent learns these relations from delayed feedback to optimize decisions.
result Proved a regret bound for the proposed algorithm's performance.

New algorithm reduces regret in multi-armed bandit problems with Gaussian rewards.

problem Optimizing decisions in multi-armed bandit problems with Gaussian rewards.
method Proposed TSCG and UTSCG algorithms using Thompson Sampling with Gaussian prior.
result Achieved lower regret bounds for optimal arm selection.

Trade-R1 bridges verifiable rewards to stochastic financial markets via process-level reasoning verification.

problem Extending RL to financial markets where rewards are verifiable but noisy.
method A verification method that transforms reasoning over financial documents into a structured RAG task, using a triangular consistency metric.
result DSR achieves superior cross-market generalization while maintaining reasoning consistency.

Study non-linear combinatorial bandits with polynomial rewards, finding significant differences from linear cases.

problem Adversarial combinatorial bandits with general non-linear reward functions.
method Extending existing work on adversarial linear combinatorial bandits, analyzing minimax optimal regret for polynomial and non-polynomial reward functions.
result Minimax optimal regret bounds for adversarial combinatorial bandits with general non-linear reward functions.

The paper tackles reward-relevance in offline RL with sparse decision dynamics.

problem Offline reinforcement learning with sparse decision dynamics and estimation sparsity.
method Reward-filtered least-squares policy evaluation using thresholded lasso.
result The method provides theoretical guarantees with sample complexity dependent on sparse component size.

Two algorithms tackle heavy-tailed rewards in reinforcement learning with linear function approximation.

problem Online sequential decision-making with heavy-tailed rewards.
method AdaOFUL and VARA algorithms for linear stochastic bandits and MDPs, using modified adaptive Huber regression.
result Achieved state-of-the-art and variance-aware regret bounds for heavy-tailed rewards.

Generative Flow Networks use submodular upper bounds to generate more data.

problem Generating data from unknown, complex reward functions efficiently.
method Introduce submodular upper bounds to estimate reward, use Optimism in the Face of Uncertainty principle to train GFNs.
result SUBo-GFN generates significantly more data than classical GFNs.

Improves generative models by optimizing rewards and sample editing.

problem Efficiently generating high-reward samples with structural constraints.
method Introduces MDM-VGB, a discrete diffusion sampler that augments unmasking generation with reward-guided remasking.
result MDM-VGB achieves quadratic complexity and robustness to noise, outperforming heuristics like best-of-NN.

Algorithm estimates human decision-making in high-dimensional states with finite-time guarantees.

problem Estimating optimal policies and measures of fit in dynamic decision models with high-dimensional state spaces.
method Single-loop estimation algorithm with stochastic gradient steps for reward maximization.
result Algorithm converges to a stationary solution with finite-time guarantees and approximates maximum likelihood sublinearly.

We consider a problem of learning the reward and policy from expert examples under unknown dynamics. Our proposed method builds on the framework of generative adversarial networks and introduces the empowerment-regularized maximum-entropy inverse reinforcement learning to learn near-optimal rewards and policies. Empowe…

2018-09-17abs ↗pdf ↗

Algorithm learns similarities to optimize bandit decisions in unknown metric space.

problem Optimizing decisions in unknown metric space with nonparametric reward functions.
method Data-driven similarities for adaptive partitioning of context-arm space.
result Regret bounds highlight algorithm's dependence on reward functions' local geometry.

Improved exploration in factored average-reward MDPs reduces regret.

problem Minimizing regret in unknown Factored Markov Decision Processes (FMDPs).
method DBN-UCRL strategy, inspired by UCRL2, uses Bernstein-type confidence sets for individual elements of the transition function.
result Achieves a regret bound with a leading term strictly improving over existing bounds.

DeepSynth synthesizes automata to guide deep RL agents through sparse, non-Markovian rewards.

problem Training deep RL agents with sparse, non-Markovian rewards and unknown high-level objectives.
method Employing a novel algorithm for synthesizing compact automata to uncover sequential structure from trace data.
result Reduces the number of iterations required for policy synthesis by two orders of magnitude and improves scalability.

Study shows fast rates for inverse reinforcement learning with linear rewards.

problem Entropy-regularized min-max inverse reinforcement learning in finite-horizon MDPs.
method Structural and statistical analysis of Min-Max-IRL with pseudo-self-concordance.
result Both trajectory-level KL divergence and parameter error decay at O(n1)\mathcal{O}(n^{-1}).

New algorithm uses Whittle index to improve Q-learning for restless bandits.

problem Optimizing decision-making in multiarmed restless bandits with average reward.
method Introduces a novel reinforcement learning algorithm combining Q-learning and Whittle index policy.
result Demonstrates significant computational gains and excellent empirical performance.

The explore{exploit dilemma is one of the central challenges in Reinforcement Learning (RL). Bayesian RL solves the dilemma by providing the agent with information in the form of a prior distribution over environments; however, full Bayesian planning is intractable. Planning with the mean MDP is a common myopic approxi…

2012-03-15abs ↗pdf ↗

A new estimator for state values in reinforcement learning reduces complexity and improves convergence.

problem Estimating state values in reinforcement learning with Markov reward processes.
method Loop estimator exploiting regenerative structure of Markov reward processes.
result Instance-dependent convergence rate of O~(τs/T)\widetilde{O}\left(\sqrt{τ_s/T}\right) for estimating state values.

New algorithm learns expert reward structures from batch data.

problem Learning expert reward structures from batch data without dynamics models.
method Deep Successor Feature Networks (DSFN) and transition-regularized imitation network.
result Superior performance on control benchmarks and sepsis management.

Novel algorithm reduces computational burden in IRL with finite-time guarantees.

problem Efficiently recover reward function and optimal policy from expert behavior.
method Single-loop algorithm that maximizes likelihood after each policy improvement step.
result Algorithm provably converges to a stationary solution with finite-time guarantees.