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We analyze a stochastic approximation algorithm for decision-dependent problems, wherein the data distribution used by the algorithm evolves along the iterate sequence. The primary examples of such problems appear in performative prediction…
We consider the problem of walking in an unknown street, for a robot that has a minimal sensing capability. The robot is equipped with a sensor that only detects the discontinuities in depth information (gaps) and can locate the target…
Optimization algorithms appear in the core calculations of numerous Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning methods, as well as Engineering and Business applications. Following recent works on the theoretical deficiencies of AI, a…
To infer the parameters of mechanistic models with intractable likelihoods, techniques such as approximate Bayesian computation (ABC) are increasingly being adopted. One of the main disadvantages of ABC in practical situations, however, is…
We propose a stochastic approximation method for approximating the efficient frontier of chance-constrained nonlinear programs. Our approach is based on a bi-objective viewpoint of chance-constrained programs that seeks solutions on the…
We consider unconstrained randomized optimization of convex objective functions. We analyze the Random Pursuit algorithm, which iteratively computes an approximate solution to the optimization problem by repeated optimization over a…
We look into the problem of stochastic resetting with refractory periods. The model dynamics comprises diffusive and motionless phases. The diffusive phase ends at random time instants, at which the system is reset to a given position --…
Iterative phase retrieval algorithms typically employ projections onto constraint subspaces to recover the unknown phases in the Fourier transform of an image, or, in the case of x-ray crystallography, the electron density of a molecule.…
We study the trajectory optimization problem under chance constraints for continuous-time stochastic systems. To address chance constraints imposed on the entire stochastic trajectory, we propose a framework based on the set erosion…
Local Policy Search is a popular reinforcement learning approach for handling large state spaces. Formally, it searches locally in a paramet erized policy space in order to maximize the associated value function averaged over some…
A group of cooperative aerial robots can be deployed to efficiently patrol a terrain, in which each robot flies around an assigned area and shares information with the neighbors periodically in order to protect or supervise it. To ensure…
We propose a generalization of the stochastic resetting mechanism for a Brownian particle diffusing in a one-dimensional periodic potential: randomly in time, the particle gets reset at the bottom of the potential well it was in. Numerical…
Stochastic resetting is a driving mechanism that is known to minimize the first passage time to reach a target, at the cost of energy expenditure. The choice of the physical implementation of each resetting event determines the tradeoff…
We study the sample complexity of stochastic convex optimization when problem parameters, e.g., the distance to optimality, are unknown. We pursue two strategies. First, we develop a reliable model selection method that avoids overfitting…
We present a general framework for optimizing the Conditional Value-at-Risk for dynamical systems using stochastic search. The framework is capable of handling the uncertainty from the initial condition, stochastic dynamics, and uncertain…
A decentralized search algorithm is a method of routing on a random graph that uses only limited, local, information about the realization of the graph. In some random graph models it is possible to define such algorithms which produce…
We combine the processes of resetting and first-passage to define \emph{first-passage resetting}, where the resetting of a random walk to a fixed position is triggered by a first-passage event of the walk itself. In an infinite domain,…
For deterministic optimization, line-search methods augment algorithms by providing stability and improved efficiency. We adapt a classical backtracking Armijo line-search to the stochastic optimization setting. While traditional…
An approach for the description of stochastic systems is derived. Some of the variables in the system are studied forward in time, others backward in time. The approach is based on a perturbation expansion in the strength of the coupling…
In the classical context, it is well known that, sometimes, if the search does not find its target, it is better to start the process anew again, known as resetting. The quantum counterpart of resetting also indicates speeding up the…