Related papers: A Deterministic Gradient-Based Approach to Avoid S…
In this paper, we propose a generalized framework for developing learning-rate-free momentum stochastic gradient descent (SGD) methods in the minimization of nonsmooth nonconvex functions, especially in training nonsmooth neural networks.…
This paper considers the problem of understanding the exit time for trajectories of gradient-related first-order methods from saddle neighborhoods under some initial boundary conditions. Given the 'flat' geometry around saddle points,…
We present distributed subgradient methods for min-max problems with agreement constraints on a subset of the arguments of both the convex and concave parts. Applications include constrained minimization problems where each constraint is a…
We consider convex-concave saddle point problems with a separable structure and non-strongly convex functions. We propose an efficient stochastic block coordinate descent method using adaptive primal-dual updates, which enables flexible…
This paper analyzes the trajectories of stochastic gradient descent (SGD) to help understand the algorithm's convergence properties in non-convex problems. We first show that the sequence of iterates generated by SGD remains bounded and…
Understanding the algorithmic bias of \emph{stochastic gradient descent} (SGD) is one of the key challenges in modern machine learning and deep learning theory. Most of the existing works, however, focus on \emph{very small or even…
The performance of gradient-based optimization methods, such as standard gradient descent (GD), greatly depends on the choice of learning rate. However, it can require a non-trivial amount of user tuning effort to select an appropriate…
We investigate the problem of finding second-order stationary points (SOSP) in differentially private (DP) stochastic non-convex optimization. Existing methods suffer from two key limitations: (i) inaccurate convergence error rate due to…
While machine learning has achieved remarkable results in a wide variety of domains, the training of models often requires large datasets that may need to be collected from different individuals. As sensitive information may be contained in…
We analyze the behavior of randomized coordinate gradient descent for nonconvex optimization, proving that under standard assumptions, the iterates almost surely escape strict saddle points. By formulating the method as a nonlinear random…
Here we present a multiscale method to calculate the saddle point associated with the effective dynamics arising from a stochastic system which couples slow deterministic drift and fast stochastic dynamics. This problem is motivated by the…
Deep learning models are increasingly popular in many machine learning applications where the training data may contain sensitive information. To provide formal and rigorous privacy guarantee, many learning systems now incorporate…
Stochastic gradient descent is the method of choice for large scale optimization of machine learning objective functions. Yet, its performance is greatly variable and heavily depends on the choice of the stepsizes. This has motivated a…
We study the iteration complexity of stochastic gradient descent (SGD) for minimizing the gradient norm of smooth, possibly nonconvex functions. We provide several results, implying that the $\mathcal{O}(\epsilon^{-4})$ upper bound of…
Saddle points provide a hierarchical view of the energy landscape, revealing transition pathways and interconnected basins of attraction, and offering insight into the global structure, metastability, and possible collective mechanisms of…
Stochastic gradient descent (SGD) provides a simple and efficient way to solve a broad range of machine learning problems. Here, we focus on distribution regression (DR), involving two stages of sampling: Firstly, we regress from…
While much progress has been achieved over the last decades in neuro-inspired machine learning, there are still fundamental theoretical problems in gradient-based learning using combinations of neurons. These problems, such as saddle points…
Stochastic gradient descent (SGD) is a widely used algorithm in machine learning, particularly for neural network training. Recent studies on SGD for canonical quadratic optimization or linear regression show it attains well generalization…
Motivated by the super-diffusivity of self-repelling random walk, which has roots in statistical physics, this paper develops a new perturbation mechanism for optimization algorithms. In this mechanism, perturbations are adapted to the…
Given a non-convex twice differentiable cost function f, we prove that the set of initial conditions so that gradient descent converges to saddle points where \nabla^2 f has at least one strictly negative eigenvalue has (Lebesgue) measure…