Adjustable robust optimization (ARO) is a powerful tool to model problems that have uncertain data and that feature a two-stage decision making process. Computationally, they are often addressed using the column-and-constraint generation (CCG) algorithm introduced by Zhao and Zeng in 2012. While it was empirically shown that the algorithm scales well if all second-stage decisions … Read more
Robust optimization provides a mathematical framework for modeling and solving decision-making problems under worst-case uncertainty. This work addresses two-stage robust optimization (2RO) problems (also called adjustable robust optimization), wherein first-stage and second-stage decisions are made before and after uncertainty is realized, respectively. This results in a nested min-max-min optimization problem which is extremely challenging computationally, … Read more
One of the great challenges in reaching zero hunger is to secure the availability of sufficient nourishment in the worst of times such as humanitarian emergencies. Food aid operations during a humanitarian emergency are typically subject to a high level of uncertainty. In this paper, we develop a novel robust optimization model for food aid … Read more
We consider stochastic optimization with side information where, prior to decision making, covariate data are available to inform better decisions. In particular, we propose to consider a distributionally robust formulation based on causal transport distance. Compared with divergence and Wasserstein metric, the causal transport distance is better at capturing the information structure revealed from the conditional distribution … Read more
We consider a generalization of two-stage decision problems in which the second-stage decision may be a function of a predictive signal but cannot adapt fully to the realized uncertainty. We will show how such problems can be learned from sample data by considering a family of regularized sample average formulations. Furthermore, our regularized data-driven formulations … Read more
This paper explores a class of nonlinear Adjustable Robust Optimization (ARO) problems, containing here-and-now and wait-and-see variables, with uncertainty in the objective function and constraints. By applying Fenchel’s duality on the wait-and-see variables, we obtain an equivalent dual reformulation, which is a nonlinear static robust optimization problem. Using the dual formulation, we provide conditions under … Read more
We study policy optimization for the feature-based newsvendor, which seeks an end-to-end policy that renders an explicit mapping from features to ordering decisions. Unlike existing works that restrict the policies to some parametric class which may suffer from sub-optimality (such as affine class) or lack of interpretability (such as neural networks), we aim to optimize … Read more
We investigate the concept of adjustability — the difference in objective values between two types of dynamic robust optimization formulations: one where (static) decisions are made before uncertainty realization, and one where uncertainty is resolved before (adjustable) decisions. This difference reflects the value of information and decision timing in optimization under uncertainty, and is related … Read more
Maximizing a convex function over convex constraints is an NP-hard problem in general. We prove that such a problem can be reformulated as an adjustable robust optimization (ARO) problem where each adjustable variable corresponds to a unique constraint of the original problem. We use ARO techniques to obtain approximate solutions to the convex maximization problem. … Read more
This work proposes a framework for multistage adjustable robust optimization that unifies the treatment of three different types of endogenous uncertainty, where decisions, respectively, (i) alter the uncertainty set, (ii) affect the materialization of uncertain parameters, and (iii) determine the time when the true values of uncertain parameters are observed. We provide a systematic analysis … Read more