Paper analyzes normal approximation for two-timescale stochastic algorithms, revealing interaction between fast and slow timescales.
problem Non-asymptotic bounds for accuracy of normal approximation in linear two-timescale stochastic approximation algorithms.
method Established bounds for normal approximation in terms of convex distance, focusing on last iterate and Polyak-Ruppert averaging.
result Normal approximation rate for the last iterate improves with increased timescale separation, while it decreases in the averaged setting.
In this paper we present a framework to analyze the asymptotic behavior of two timescale stochastic approximation algorithms including those with set-valued mean fields. This paper builds on the works of Borkar and Perkins & Leslie. The framework presented herein is more general as compared to the synchronous two times…
This study improves convergence of two-timescale SA under Markovian noise in reinforcement learning.
problem Stability and convergence of two-timescale stochastic approximations under Markovian noise.
method Introduced a new control strategy for the fast timescale parameter.
result Established almost sure convergence of TDC with eligibility traces under off-policy learning with linear function approximation.
Study analyzes a new algorithm for complex optimization problems.
problem Stochastic bilevel optimisation problems in continuous-time models.
method Continuous-time, two-timescale stochastic approximation algorithm.
result Obtained weak convergence rate using central limit theorem.
Paper analyzes CLT for TTSA with Markovian noise, broadening its applications.
problem Analyzing asymptotic behavior of TTSA under Markovian noise.
method Central Limit Theorem applied to TTSA with Markovian noise.
result Uncovered coupled dynamics of TTSA influenced by Markov chain.
Paper analyzes Greedy-GQ for reinforcement learning with Markovian noise.
problem Analyzing Greedy-GQ for reinforcement learning with Markovian noise.
method Develops finite-sample analysis for Greedy-GQ with linear function approximation under Markovian noise.
result Provides theoretical justification for choosing stepsizes for faster convergence.
Study Whittle index learning algorithms for restless bandits with constant stepsizes.
problem Optimizing decisions in restless multi-armed bandits with constant stepsizes.
method Developed Q-learning algorithms with constant stepsizes for index learning in restless bandits, extending to DQN and function approximations.
result The algorithms learn the Whittle index effectively.
Two-Timescale EM Methods improve EM for nonconvex models.
problem Nonconvex latent variable models are challenging for EM.
method Two-stage stochastic updates to handle nonconvex optimization.
result Global convergence for nonconvex objective functions.
Linear two-timescale stochastic approximation (SA) scheme is an important class of algorithms which has become popular in reinforcement learning (RL), particularly for the policy evaluation problem. Recently, a number of works have been devoted to establishing the finite time analysis of the scheme, especially under th…
The asymptotic pseudo-trajectory approach to stochastic approximation of Benaim, Hofbauer and Sorin is extended for asynchronous stochastic approximations with a set-valued mean field. The asynchronicity of the process is incorporated into the mean field to produce convergence results which remain similar to those of a…
This paper analyzes the sample complexity of two timescale reinforcement learning algorithms.
problem Analyzing the sample complexity of two timescale reinforcement learning algorithms.
method Non-asymptotic analysis of linear and nonlinear TDC and Greedy-GQ algorithms under Markovian sampling with constant stepsize.
result The paper provides non-asymptotic convergence results for two timescale linear and nonlinear TDC and Greedy-GQ algorithms.
Proves convergence of neural networks in a two-timescale regime.
problem Training dynamics of shallow neural networks.
method Two-timescale regime analysis of gradient flow.
result Gradient flow converges to global optimum in non-convex optimization.
We present for the first time an asymptotic convergence analysis of two time-scale stochastic approximation driven by `controlled' Markov noise. In particular, both the faster and slower recursions have non-additive controlled Markov noise components in addition to martingale difference noise. We analyze the asymptotic…
Study on Adam-family methods for nonsmooth optimization with convergence guarantees.
problem Training nonsmooth neural networks with convergence guarantees.
method Two-timescale updating scheme and stochastic subgradient methods with gradient clipping.
result Convergence guarantees for various Adam-family methods in training nonsmooth neural networks.
We present the first provably convergent two-timescale off-policy actor-critic algorithm (COF-PAC) with function approximation. Key to COF-PAC is the introduction of a new critic, the emphasis critic, which is trained via Gradient Emphasis Learning (GEM), a novel combination of the key ideas of Gradient Temporal Differ…
Authors improve accuracy analysis for portfolio optimization with multiple timescale factors.
problem Asymptotic accuracy of portfolio optimization approximations for general utility functions and two timescale factors.
method Construct sub- and super-solutions to fully nonlinear problem.
result Rigorous justification of accuracy for portfolio optimization with general utility functions and two timescale factors.
The paper analyzes the sample complexities for policy evaluation with linear function approximation.
problem Policy evaluation with linear function approximation in discounted infinite horizon Markov decision processes.
method Investigates sample complexities for two policy evaluation algorithms: TD and TDC.
result Establishes high-probability sample complexity bounds for policy evaluation algorithms.
Two single-timescale algorithms improve TD learning with nonlinear approximations.
problem Optimizing TD learning with nonlinear smooth function approximation.
method Proposes two single-timescale single-loop algorithms with momentum and variance reduction.
result Achieves O(ε−4) sample complexity for the first algorithm and O(ε−3) for the second. Two novel algorithms improve distributed machine learning in the presence of Byzantine adversaries.
problem Improving distributed machine learning in the presence of Byzantine adversaries.
method Two novel stochastic gradient descent algorithms, ByGARS and ByGARS++, using reputation scores for gradient aggregation.
result Robust to any number of multiplicative noise Byzantine adversaries and converge for strongly convex loss functions.
Motivated by the recent applications of game-theoretical learning techniques to the design of distributed control systems, we study a class of control problems that can be formulated as potential games with continuous action sets, and we propose an actor-critic reinforcement learning algorithm that provably converges t…
Develops a new method for efficient stochastic bilevel optimization.
problem Stochastic bilevel optimization problems in machine learning applications.
method Single-Timescale stochAstic BiLevEl optimization (STABLE) method.
result Achieves the same order of sample complexity as stochastic gradient descent for single-level optimization.
New analysis improves understanding of bilevel optimization stability and generalization.
problem Understanding how well bilevel optimization algorithms generalize.
method Algorithmic stability arguments and generalization bounds for three bilevel minimax solvers.
result Precise trade-off between algorithmic stability, generalization gaps, and practical settings.
This work analyzes how neural networks learn representations in actor-critic algorithms.
problem Theoretical support for neural AC algorithms is limited to linear function approximations.
method Mean-field analysis of a two-timescale learning AC algorithm with overparameterized networks.
result Neural AC finds the globally optimal policy at a sublinear rate in the continuous-time and infinite-width limiting regime.
SUSTAIN algorithm tackles stochastic bilevel optimization with near-optimal complexity.
problem Stochastic bilevel optimization problems with specific convexity and smoothness properties.
method SUSTAIN algorithm using single-timescale double-momentum stochastic approximation.
result SUSTAIN achieves near-optimal complexity for finding ε-stationary solutions.
PFedRL-Rep learns shared and personalized policies for heterogeneous environments.
problem Poor performance of single policy in heterogeneous environments.
method Develops PFedRL-Rep framework with shared feature representation and personalized weights.
result Proves linear convergence speedup with respect to the number of agents.
The paper analyzes an actor-critic algorithm with target networks for deep reinforcement learning.
problem Lack of theoretical understanding of target networks in actor-critic methods.
method Proposes a theoretical analysis of an online target-based actor-critic algorithm with linear function approximation.
result Establishes asymptotic convergence results and finite-time analysis for both critic and actor.
Single-timescale actor-critic finds globally optimal policy.
problem Finding globally optimal policy in reinforcement learning.
method Simultaneous actor and critic updates with linear or deep neural network approximations.
result Actor sequence converges to globally optimal policy at O(K−1/2) rate. Semi-decentralized federated learning combines device-to-server and device-to-device communications for faster convergence.
problem Faster convergence in federated learning with decentralized model training.
method Two timescale hybrid federated learning (TT-HF) with cooperative D2D model aggregations.
result Achieves sublinear convergence rate of O(1/t) with adaptive control algorithm.
New algorithm reduces bias in off-policy reinforcement learning.
problem Challenges in designing off-policy reinforcement learning algorithms.
method Doubly robust off-policy actor-critic (DR-Off-PAC) with a single timescale structure.
result Establishes the first overall sample complexity analysis for a single time-scale off-policy AC algorithm.
High-probability bound for distributed stochastic approximation tracking error.
problem Analyzing the convergence of distributed stochastic approximation schemes.
method Analysis using ODE approach to stochastic approximation.
result High probability bound for tracking error between iterates and limiting differential equation.
Stochastic approximation algorithms show exponential progress bounds.
problem Analyzing the convergence of stochastic approximation algorithms.
method Developed geometric ergodicity proofs to establish exponential concentration bounds.
result Proved faster convergence rates for specific algorithms.
Deviation inequalities for stochastic approximation methods.
problem Establishing bounds on the deviation of stochastic approximation methods.
method Martingale approximation method for separately Lipschitz functions.
result Established various deviation inequalities for stochastic approximation by averaging and minimization.
Neural networks can approximate complex stochastic equations well.
problem Approximating general stochastic differential equations.
method Identified neural network classes approximating continuous functions.
result Neural stochastic differential equations can approximate general stochastic differential equations arbitrarily well.
New algorithms for approximating stochastic processes efficiently.
problem Finding accurate finite approximations for stochastic processes.
method Develops new algorithms and fast implementations for approximating stochastic processes.
result Efficient approximations for stochastic processes can be found.
This work analyzes nonexpansive stochastic approximations with Markovian noise, proving convergence in reinforcement learning.
problem Applying stochastic approximation to reinforcement learning settings with nonexpansive operators.
method Investigates nonexpansive stochastic approximations with Markovian noise, providing asymptotic and finite sample analysis.
result First-time proof of convergence for classical tabular average reward temporal difference learning.
Paper develops SINNOs for approximating stochastic processes.
problem Approximating stochastic processes with neural networks.
method Developed stochastic interpolation neural network operators (SINNOs) with random coefficients.
result Established boundedness, interpolation accuracy, and approximation capabilities of SINNOs.
Stochastic gradient descent on manifolds improves low-rank approximation.
problem Efficiently approximate large matrices with lower rank.
method Stochastic gradient descent on a manifold.
result Algorithm outperforms Euclidean space methods on Netflix Prize data.
Universal approximation for stochastic processes using Brownian motion.
problem Approximating stochastic processes with linear functionals.
method Establishing Lp-type universal approximation theorems for rough path spaces. result Linear functionals on the signature of time-extended Brownian motion can approximate any p-integrable stochastic process. We develop the mathematical foundations of the stochastic modified equations (SME) framework for analyzing the dynamics of stochastic gradient algorithms, where the latter is approximated by a class of stochastic differential equations with small noise parameters. We prove that this approximation can be understood math…
Approximates derivative pricing under fractional stochastic volatility.
problem Derivative pricing under fractional stochastic volatility model.
method Approximate expression derived from deterministic functions and fractional Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process.
result Numerical simulations show the feasibility and effect of long-range dependencies on derivative prices.
Study approximates rough stochastic volatility models using diffusion processes.
problem High computational cost in simulating rough stochastic volatility models.
method Approximates stochastic Volterra equations with an N-dimensional diffusion process.
result Approximations converge strongly with superpolynomial rate in N.
Paper proves large deviation principle for stochastic approximations.
problem Asymptotic estimates of learning algorithm deviations.
method Weak convergence approach to large deviations.
result Identifies appropriate scaling sequence and new representation for rate function.
Riemannian stochastic gradient descent approximates a diffusion process called Riemannian stochastic modified flow.
problem Improving convergence rate of Riemannian stochastic gradient descent.
method Using stochastic differential geometry, the paper shows RSGD can be approximated by the Riemannian stochastic modified flow (RSMF).
result RSGD can be approximated by the solution to the RSMF driven by an infinite-dimensional Wiener process, increasing the order of approximation.
Analyzes non-Markovian environments in stochastic approximation.
problem Understanding learning mechanisms in non-ergodic, non-Markovian settings.
method Analytic framework for transformer learning and continual learning.
result Proposes a new approach to transformer and continual learning.
Stochastic approximation proves asymptotic normality for non-smooth problems.
problem Solving non-smooth stochastic approximation problems.
method Stochastic approximation algorithms for solving smooth equations, extended to non-smooth problems.
result Asymptotic normality and optimality in non-smooth stochastic approximation is proven.
Although stochastic approximation learning methods have been widely used in the machine learning literature for over 50 years, formal theoretical analyses of specific machine learning algorithms are less common because stochastic approximation theorems typically possess assumptions which are difficult to communicate an…
Diffusion approximation provides weak approximation for stochastic gradient descent algorithms in a finite time horizon. In this paper, we introduce new tools motivated by the backward error analysis of numerical stochastic differential equations into the theoretical framework of diffusion approximation, extending the …
Paper establishes convergence rates and concentration bounds for stochastic approximation and reinforcement learning with Markovian noise.
problem Analyzing convergence rates and concentration bounds for stochastic approximation and reinforcement learning with Markovian noise.
method Novel discretization of the mean ODE of stochastic approximation algorithms using intervals with diminishing length.
result First almost sure convergence rate and maximal concentration bound with exponential tails for contractive stochastic approximation algorithms with Markovian noise.