Related papers: A General Stochastic Algorithmic Framework for Min…
In this paper, we introduce a new heuristics for global optimization in scenarios where extensive evaluations of the cost function are expensive, inaccessible, or even prohibitive. The method, which we call Landscape-Sketch-and-Step (LSS),…
Stochastic Gradient (SG) is the defacto iterative technique to solve stochastic optimization (SO) problems with a smooth (non-convex) objective $f$ and a stochastic first-order oracle. SG's attractiveness is due in part to its simplicity of…
We address black-box convex optimization problems, where the objective and constraint functions are not explicitly known but can be sampled within the feasible set. The challenge is thus to generate a sequence of feasible points converging…
Gradient-based optimization is now ubiquitous across graphics, but unfortunately can not be applied to problems with undefined or zero gradients. To circumvent this issue, the loss function can be manually replaced by a ``surrogate'' that…
This work introduces the StoMADS-PB algorithm for constrained stochastic blackbox optimization, which is an extension of the mesh adaptive direct-search (MADS) method originally developed for deterministic blackbox optimization under…
This paper propose a new frame work for finding global minima which we call optimization by cut. In each iteration, it takes some samples from the feasible region and evaluates the objective function at these points. Based on the…
Several fundamental problems in science and engineering consist of global optimization tasks involving unknown high-dimensional (black-box) functions that map a set of controllable variables to the outcomes of an expensive experiment.…
Optimization of very expensive black-box functions requires utilization of maximum information gathered by the process of optimization. Model Guided Sampling Optimization (MGSO) forms a more robust alternative to Jones'…
Evolutionary optimization algorithms often face defects and limitations that complicate the evolution processes or even prevent them from reaching the global optimum. A notable constraint pertains to the considerable quantity of function…
Optimizing an expensive, black-box function $f(\cdot)$ is challenging when its input space is high-dimensional. Sequential design frameworks first model $f(\cdot)$ with a surrogate function and then optimize an acquisition function to…
Based on the stochastic maximum principle for the partially coupled forward-backward stochastic control system (FBSCS for short), a modified method of successive approximations (MSA for short) is established for stochastic recursive optimal…
In this paper, we focus on developing efficient sensitivity analysis methods for a computationally expensive objective function $f(x)$ in the case that the minimization of it has just been performed. Here "computationally expensive" means…
Parallel surrogate optimization algorithms have proven to be efficient methods for solving expensive noisy optimization problems. In this work we develop a new parallel surrogate optimization algorithm (ProSRS), using a novel tree-based…
Neural operators have emerged as data-driven surrogates for solving partial differential equations (PDEs), and their success hinges on efficiently modeling the long-range, global coupling among spatial points induced by the underlying…
Bayesian optimization is a broadly applied methodology to optimize the expensive black-box function. Despite its success, it still faces the challenge from the high-dimensional search space. To alleviate this problem, we propose a novel…
A radial basis function (RBF) based sequential surrogate reliability method (SSRM) is proposed, in which a special optimization problem is solved to update the surrogate model of the limit state function (LSF) iteratively. The objective of…
We address the problem of training models with black-box and hard-to-optimize metrics by expressing the metric as a monotonic function of a small number of easy-to-optimize surrogates. We pose the training problem as an optimization over a…
In this paper, we study the standard formulation of an optimization problem when the computation of gradient is not available. Such a problem can be classified as a "black box" optimization problem, since the oracle returns only the value…
Optimization problems involving mixed variables (i.e., variables of numerical and categorical nature) can be challenging to solve, especially in the presence of mixed-variable constraints. Moreover, when the objective function is the result…
This paper proposes a novel technique called "successive stochastic smoothing" that optimizes nonsmooth and discontinuous functions while considering various constraints. Our methodology enables local and global optimization, making it a…