Related papers: The Barycenter Method for Direct Optimization
We propose a novel algorithm that extends the methods of ball smoothing and Gaussian smoothing for noisy derivative-free optimization by accounting for the heterogeneous curvature of the objective function. The algorithm dynamically adapts…
Optimization methods are essential in solving complex problems across various domains. In this research paper, we introduce a novel optimization method called Gaussian Crunching Search (GCS). Inspired by the behaviour of particles in a…
The empirical success of derivative-free methods in reinforcement learning for planning through contact seems at odds with the perceived fragility of classical gradient-based optimization methods in these domains. What is causing this gap,…
Bayesian optimization is a popular and versatile approach that is well suited to solve challenging optimization problems. Their popularity comes from their effective minimization of expensive function evaluations, their capability to…
Gaussian Process based Bayesian Optimization is a widely applied algorithm to learn and optimize under uncertainty, well-known for its sample efficiency. However, recently -- and more frequently -- research studies have empirically…
We present and study a novel algorithm for the computation of 2-Wasserstein population barycenters of absolutely continuous probability measures on Euclidean space. The proposed method can be seen as a stochastic gradient descent procedure…
We study first-order optimization algorithms for computing the barycenter of Gaussian distributions with respect to the optimal transport metric. Although the objective is geodesically non-convex, Riemannian GD empirically converges…
An algorithm is proposed, analyzed, and tested for minimizing locally Lipschitz objective functions that may be nonconvex and/or nonsmooth. The algorithm, which is built upon the gradient-sampling methodology, is designed specifically for…
We apply a state-of-the-art, local derivative-free solver, Py-BOBYQA, to global optimization problems, and propose an algorithmic improvement that is beneficial in this context. Our numerical findings are illustrated on a commonly-used but…
In this paper, we propose a stochastic search algorithm for solving general optimization problems with little structure. The algorithm iteratively finds high quality solutions by randomly sampling candidate solutions from a parameterized…
Stochastic gradient descent algorithms for training linear and kernel predictors are gaining more and more importance, thanks to their scalability. While various methods have been proposed to speed up their convergence, the model selection…
Variational Optimization forms a differentiable upper bound on an objective. We show that approaches such as Natural Evolution Strategies and Gaussian Perturbation, are special cases of Variational Optimization in which the expectations are…
In this paper, we focus on the analysis of the regularized Wasserstein barycenter problem. We provide uniqueness and a characterization of the barycenter for two important classes of probability measures: (i) Gaussian distributions and (ii)…
Optimization and control of complex unsteady flows remains an important challenge due to the large cost of performing a function evaluation, i.e. a full computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation. Reducing the number of required function…
Approximation of subdifferentials is one of the main tasks when computing descent directions for nonsmooth optimization problems. In this article, we propose a bisection method for weakly lower semismooth functions which is able to compute…
We consider the problem of recovering the surface wave profile from noisy bottom pressure measurements with (\textit{a priori} unknown) arbitrary pressure at the surface. Without noise, the direct approach developed in…
We study the computation of doubly regularized Wasserstein barycenters, a recently introduced family of entropic barycenters governed by inner and outer regularization strengths. Previous research has demonstrated that various…
We present a model-based derivative-free method for optimization subject to general convex constraints, which we assume are unrelaxable and accessed only through a projection operator that is cheap to evaluate. We prove global convergence…
An algorithm based on the interior-point methodology for solving continuous nonlinearly constrained optimization problems is proposed, analyzed, and tested. The distinguishing feature of the algorithm is that it presumes that only noisy…
This paper presents a novel approach to optimizing profit margins in non-life insurance markets through a gradient descent-based method, targeting three key objectives: 1) maximizing profit margins, 2) ensuring conversion rates, and 3)…