A new proximal gradient algorithm for solving mixed variational inequality problems with a novel explicit stepsize and applications

In this paper, we propose a new algorithm for solving monotone mixed variational inequality problems in real Hilbert spaces based on proximal gradient method. Our new algorithm uses a novel explicit stepsize which is proved to be increasing to a positive value. This property plays an important role in improving the speed of the algorithm. … Read more

Riemannian trust-region methods for strict saddle functions with complexity guarantees

The difficulty of minimizing a nonconvex function is in part explained by the presence of saddle points. This slows down optimization algorithms and impacts worst-case complexity guarantees. However, many nonconvex problems of interest possess a favorable structure for optimization, in the sense that saddle points can be escaped efficiently by appropriate algorithms. This strict saddle … Read more

Extending the Reach of First-Order Algorithms for Nonconvex Min-Max Problems with Cohypomonotonicity

We focus on constrained, \(L\)-smooth, nonconvex-nonconcave min-max problems either satisfying \(\rho\)-cohypomonotonicity or admitting a solution to the \(\rho\)-weakly Minty Variational Inequality (MVI), where larger values of the parameter \(\rho>0\) correspond to a greater degree of nonconvexity. These problem classes include examples in two player reinforcement learning, interaction dominant min-max problems, and certain synthetic test problems on … Read more

Using Filter Methods to Guide Convergence for ADMM, with Applications to Nonnegative Matrix Factorization Problems

Nonconvex, nonlinear cost functions arise naturally in physical inverse problems and machine learning. The alternating direction method of multipliers (ADMM) has seen extensive use in these applications, despite exhibiting uncertain convergence behavior in many practical nonconvex settings, and struggling with general nonlinear constraints. In contrast, filter methods have proved effective in enforcing convergence for sequential … Read more

Riemannian Bilevel Optimization

In this work, we consider the bilevel optimization problem on Riemannian manifolds. We inspect the calculation of the hypergradient of such problems on general manifolds and thus enable the utilization of gradient-based algorithms to solve such problems. The calculation of the hypergradient requires utilizing the notion of Riemannian cross-derivative and we inspect the properties and … Read more

Lipschitz Based Lower Bound Construction for Surrogate Optimization

Bounds play a vital role in guiding optimization algorithms by enhancing convergence, improving solution quality, and quantifying optimality gaps. While Lipschitz-based lower bounds are well-established, their effectiveness is often constrained by the function’s topological properties. To address these limitations, we propose an approach that integrates nonlinear distance metrics with surrogate approximations, yielding more adaptive and … Read more

Refined TSSOS

The moment-sum of squares hierarchy by Lasserre has become an established technique for solving polynomial optimization problems. It provides a monotonically increasing series of tight bounds, but has well-known scalability limitations. For structured optimization problems, the term-sparsity SOS (TSSOS) approach scales much better due to block-diagonal matrices, obtained by completing the connected components of adjacency … Read more

Sparse Polynomial Optimization with Unbounded Sets

This paper considers sparse polynomial optimization with unbounded sets. When the problem possesses correlative sparsity, we propose a sparse homogenized Moment-SOS hierarchy with perturbations to solve it. The new hierarchy introduces one extra auxiliary variable for each variable clique according to the correlative sparsity pattern. Under the running intersection property, we prove that this hierarchy … Read more

A low-rank augmented Lagrangian method for large-scale semidefinite programming based on a hybrid convex-nonconvex approach

This paper introduces HALLaR, a new first-order method for solving large-scale semidefinite programs (SDPs) with bounded domain. HALLaR is an inexact augmented Lagrangian (AL) method where the AL subproblems are solved by a novel hybrid low-rank (HLR) method. The recipe behind HLR is based on two key ingredients: 1) an adaptive inexact proximal point method … Read more

Design Guidelines for Noise-Tolerant Optimization with Applications in Robust Design

The development of nonlinear optimization algorithms capable of performing reliably in the presence of noise has garnered considerable attention lately. This paper advocates for strategies to create noise-tolerant nonlinear optimization algorithms by adapting classical deterministic methods. These adaptations follow certain design guidelines described here, which make use of estimates of the noise level in the … Read more