Kernel semi-implicit variational inference improves variational inference without additional optimization.
problem Intractability of hierarchical semi-implicit distributions in variational inference.
method Kernel semi-implicit variational inference (KSIVI) using kernel methods to eliminate lower-level optimization.
result KSIVI reduces variational inference to kernel Stein discrepancy (KSD) optimization, improving expressiveness and tractability.
Continuous semi-implicit models enable faster training and better performance in generative modeling.
problem Slow convergence in hierarchical semi-implicit models during training.
method CoSIM, a continuous semi-implicit model that incorporates a continuous transition kernel for efficient training.
result CoSIM achieves superior performance on image generation tasks compared to existing methods.
Semi-Implicit Variational Inference (SIVI) is improved with SIVI-SM using score matching.
problem Intractable densities in variational distributions hinder SIVI training.
method SIVI-SM uses score matching to handle intractable densities in a minimax formulation.
result SIVI-SM outperforms ELBO-based SIVI methods in Bayesian inference tasks.
Kernel SIVI improves variational inference by avoiding lower-level optimization.
problem Intractable densities in semi-implicit variational distributions.
method Kernel SIVI-SM uses a minimax formulation and kernel tricks to avoid lower-level optimization.
result Kernel Stein discrepancy (KSD) objective is computable and leads to convergence guarantees.
We extend the existing framework of semi-implicit variational inference (SIVI) and introduce doubly semi-implicit variational inference (DSIVI), a way to perform variational inference and learning when both the approximate posterior and the prior distribution are semi-implicit. In other words, DSIVI performs inference …
Enhances graph modeling with hyperbolic geometry and variational inference.
problem Challenges in modeling relational data with complex dependencies.
method Semi-implicit hierarchical variational Bayes with Poincaré embedding and mutual information regularization.
result Improves graph representation quality and flexibility in edge prediction and node classification.
SIS-RNN improves model flexibility for sequential data.
problem Limited expressive power of existing stochastic RNNs.
method Semi-implicit variational inference for implicit latent representations.
result SIS-RNN outperforms existing methods in various tasks.
SIG-VAE enhances VGAE for graph data modeling.
problem Limited flexibility in VGAE for graph data.
method Hierarchical variational framework with Bernoulli-Poisson link decoder.
result SIG-VAE outperforms state-of-the-art methods on graph tasks.
Improved phylogenetic tree reconstruction using flexible branch length distributions.
problem Inefficient Markov chain Monte Carlo methods for large sequence datasets.
method Variational Bayesian phylogenetic inference with semi-implicit branch length distributions.
result Proposed method improves marginal likelihood estimation and branch length posterior approximation.
Unified theory for semi-implicit variational inference, bridging approximation and optimization.
problem Developing a statistical theory for semi-implicit variational inference.
method Unified theory combining approximation and optimization analyses.
result Unified theory characterizes SIVI's ability to recover target distributions and governs asymptotic behavior.
PVI improves SIVI by directly optimizing ELBO without parametric assumptions.
problem Intractable variational densities in SIVI methods.
method Particle Variational Inference (PVI) using empirical measures to approximate optimal mixing distributions.
result PVI directly optimizes the ELBO and performs favorably compared to other SIVI methods.
Semi-implicit variational inference (SIVI) is introduced to expand the commonly used analytic variational distribution family, by mixing the variational parameter with a flexible distribution. This mixing distribution can assume any density function, explicit or not, as long as independent random samples can be generat…
Improved UIVI method shows better performance than state-of-the-art SIVI methods.
problem Estimating the likelihood of samples from complex distributions in high dimensions.
method Replaced the inner MCMC loop of UIVI with importance sampling and learned the optimal proposal distribution.
result The refined UIVI approach demonstrates superior performance or parity with state-of-the-art methods.
Variational Inference is a powerful tool in the Bayesian modeling toolkit, however, its effectiveness is determined by the expressivity of the utilized variational distributions in terms of their ability to match the true posterior distribution. In turn, the expressivity of the variational family is largely limited by …
SGRNN models evolving graph data for better property prediction.
problem Modeling evolving graph data for property prediction.
method SGRNN uses stochastic latent variables to capture both node attribute and topology evolution, with semi-implicit variational inference and KL-divergence simplification.
result SGRNN improves property prediction on real-world datasets.
SIFG uses noisy particles to efficiently sample from complex distributions.
problem Efficient sampling from complex distributions using particle-based methods.
method SIFG introduces a semi-implicit functional gradient flow with Gaussian noise to improve sampling efficiency and accuracy.
result SIFG achieves strong theoretical convergence guarantees and efficient sampling.
Proposes a semi-implicit back propagation method for neural networks.
problem Challenges in training neural networks, especially gradient vanishing and small step sizes.
method Proposes a semi-implicit back propagation method using error back propagation and proximal methods.
result The proposed method leads to better performance in terms of loss decreasing and training/validation accuracy compared to SGD and ProxBP.
To combine explicit and implicit generative models, we introduce semi-implicit generator (SIG) as a flexible hierarchical model that can be trained in the maximum likelihood framework. Both theoretically and experimentally, we demonstrate that SIG can generate high quality samples especially when dealing with multi-mod…
Proposes LBD for more robust deep learning models.
problem Improving robustness and uncertainty in deep learning models.
method Model-agnostic learnable Bernoulli dropout with joint optimization of dropout rates.
result Superior performance compared to other dropout schemes.
IDAC improves reinforcement learning efficiency by modeling implicit distributions.
problem Improving sample efficiency in reinforcement learning algorithms.
method IDAC uses two DGNs for a distributional critic and a semi-implicit actor to model implicit policy distributions.
result IDAC outperforms state-of-the-art algorithms on OpenAI Gym environments.
New Thompson sampling uses local uncertainty for better decision making.
problem Sequential decision making with exploration-exploitation dilemma.
method Proposes a new probabilistic modeling framework using local latent variable uncertainty for Thompson sampling, with variational inference and semi-implicit structure.
result Thompson sampling guided by local uncertainty achieves state-of-the-art performance with low computational complexity.
Paper develops a new model for dynamic graph representation learning.
problem Learning over dynamic graphs with changing topology and node attributes.
method Hierarchical variational model with latent random variables and semi-implicit variational inference.
result SI-VGRNN and VGRNN outperform existing methods in dynamic link prediction.
In science and especially in economics, agent-based modeling has become a widely used modeling approach. These models are often formulated as a large system of difference equations. In this study, we discuss two aspects, numerical modeling and the probabilistic description for two agent-based computational economic mar…
We present a dynamical system framework for understanding Nesterov's accelerated gradient method. In contrast to earlier work, our derivation does not rely on a vanishing step size argument. We show that Nesterov acceleration arises from discretizing an ordinary differential equation with a semi-implicit Euler integrat…
We consider a numerical approach for the incompressible surface Navier-Stokes equation. The approach is based on the covariant form and uses discrete exterior calculus (DEC) in space and a semi-implicit discretization in time. The discretization is described in detail and related to finite difference schemes on stagger…
Bayesian approach improves ODE solution accuracy.
problem Improving numerical solutions of ordinary differential equations.
method Bayesian inference with Gaussian filtering and smoothing.
result Maximum a posteriori estimate converges to true solution at polynomial rate.
Neural circuits integrate continuous dynamics efficiently.
problem Efficiently integrating continuous neural dynamics for simulation and learning.
method Compact neural circuits for Runge-Kutta and Adams-Bashforth-Moulton methods.
result Equivalence of neural and numerical integration for polynomial systems.
In this paper we investigate a dynamic stochastic portfolio optimization problem involving both the expected terminal utility and intertemporal utility maximization. We solve the problem by means of a solution to a fully nonlinear evolutionary Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman (HJB) equation. We propose the so-called Riccati met…
The classical linear Black--Scholes model for pricing derivative securities is a popular model in financial industry. It relies on several restrictive assumptions such as completeness, and frictionless of the market as well as the assumption on the underlying asset price dynamics following a geometric Brownian motion. …
SiD distills pretrained diffusion models into a fast one-step generator.
problem Efficiently distilling pretrained diffusion models into a fast generator.
method Reformulates forward diffusion processes as semi-implicit distributions and uses three score-related identities to create a loss mechanism.
result Achieves high FID performance and significantly reduces generation time.
Adaptive method improves numerical solution of Cox-Ingersoll-Ross model.
problem Approximating solutions to the Cox-Ingersoll-Ross model efficiently.
method Path-bounded timestepping with hybrid approach, including a backstop method.
result The adaptive method is strongly convergent, with strong error control.
Develops a new trading strategy for renewable producers to manage price volatility.
problem Price volatility and imbalance risk in power markets due to renewable generation.
method Data-driven continuous-time stochastic optimal control framework using SDEs and diffusion models.
result Trading strategy outperforms benchmarks and reduces profit and loss.
Inference models are a key component in scaling variational inference to deep latent variable models, most notably as encoder networks in variational auto-encoders (VAEs). By replacing conventional optimization-based inference with a learned model, inference is amortized over data examples and therefore more computatio…
Approximate probabilistic inference algorithms are central to many fields. Examples include sequential Monte Carlo inference in robotics, variational inference in machine learning, and Markov chain Monte Carlo inference in statistics. A key problem faced by practitioners is measuring the accuracy of an approximate infe…
This work frames active inference through control as inference, offering robust control algorithms.
problem Active inference framework lacks practical sensorimotor control algorithms.
method Frame active inference through control as inference, presenting trajectory optimization as inference.
result AI may be framed as partially-observed CaI when the cost function is defined in observation states.
Simformer uses transformer models to perform flexible Bayesian inference.
problem Current simulation-based inference methods are inflexible and require fixed priors.
method Trains a probabilistic diffusion model with transformer architectures.
result Outperforms state-of-the-art methods on various benchmarks.
PE-SVI reduces SVI inference complexity by finding a suitable start point.
problem Complex posterior inference in graphical models leads to suboptimal learning.
method PE-SVI uses a pseudo-encoded start point to reduce gradient steps and step sizes.
result PE-SVI achieves the same ELBo objective as SVI with less than 1% of the required steps.
Improved Bayesian inference for neuronal ensemble inference reduces computational cost.
problem Efficient inference of neuronal ensembles from activity data.
method Modified MCMC algorithm with simulated annealing for hyperparameter control.
result Our method reduces computational cost while maintaining or improving inference accuracy.
Adding metadata abruptly changes network inference outcomes.
problem Understanding the impact of metadata on network inference.
method Investigated the effect of metadata on network inference problems.
result Metadata causes abrupt transitions in inference outcomes.
SNVI combines likelihood estimation with variational inference for efficient Bayesian inference.
problem Bayesian inference in models with intractable likelihoods.
method Sequential Neural Variational Inference (SNVI) that combines likelihood-estimation with variational inference.
result SNVI is more computationally efficient than previous algorithms without sacrificing accuracy.
Paper introduces a diagnostic for approximate inference methods.
problem Estimating errors in probabilistic inference algorithms, especially for approximate methods.
method Repeatedly simulate datasets from the prior and perform inference on each, estimating a symmetric KL-divergence.
result A diagnostic for approximate inference methods can be estimated using symmetric KL-divergence.
Recent efforts on combining deep models with probabilistic graphical models are promising in providing flexible models that are also easy to interpret. We propose a variational message-passing algorithm for variational inference in such models. We make three contributions. First, we propose structured inference network…
Probabilistic inference procedures are usually coded painstakingly from scratch, for each target model and each inference algorithm. We reduce this effort by generating inference procedures from models automatically. We make this code generation modular by decomposing inference algorithms into reusable program-to-progr…
A new method for safer statistical inference after predictions.
problem Statistical inference with pseudo-outcomes from machine learning predictions.
method Prediction De-Correlated Inference (PDC) framework.
result PDC consistently outperforms supervised methods and can adapt to any model.
Paper proposes Walsh-Hadamard Variational Inference for efficient approximate inference in large models.
problem Over-regularization in variational inference for large models.
method Walsh-Hadamard factorization strategies to reduce parameterization, accelerate computations, and increase posterior expressiveness.
result Efficient approximate inference achieved in over-parameterized models.
Bayesian interpolants explain neural network inferences concisely.
problem Understanding neural network inferences.
method Adapting Craig interpolants for neural networks.
result Produces precise, understandable explanations.
ptype infers data types robustly in real-world data.
problem Type inference fails with missing data and anomalies.
method Probabilistic robust type inference method.
result Outperforms existing methods.
Variational inference provides a powerful tool for approximate probabilistic in- ference on complex, structured models. Typical variational inference methods, however, require to use inference networks with computationally tractable proba- bility density functions. This largely limits the design and implementation of v…