Implicit Subgraph Neural Network

Yongjian Zhong, Liao Zhu, Hieu Vu, Bijaya Adhikari

Abstract:

Subgraph neural networks have recently gained prominence for various subgraph-level predictive tasks. However, existing methods either \emph{1)} apply simple standard pooling over graph convolutional networks, failing to capture essential subgraph properties, or \emph{2)} rely on rigid subgraph definitions, leading to suboptimal performance. Moreover, these approaches fail to model long-range dependencies both between and within subgraphs—a critical limitation, as many real-world networks contain subgraphs of varying sizes and connectivity patterns.
In this paper, we propose a novel implicit subgraph neural network, the first of its kind, designed to capture dependencies across subgraphs. Our approach also integrates label-aware subgraph-level information. We formulate implicit subgraph learning as a bilevel optimization problem and develop a provably convergent algorithm that requires fewer gradient estimations than standard bilevel optimization methods.
We evaluate our approach on real-world networks against state-of-the-art baselines, demonstrating its effectiveness and superiority.

Lay Summary:

Researchers have been using subgraph neural networks—a kind of artificial intelligence model—to make predictions based on smaller parts (subgraphs) of larger networks, like sections of social networks or protein interaction maps. However, current methods either oversimplify the data or depend too heavily on rigid definitions of what a subgraph is, which limits how well they perform—especially when it comes to understanding how distant parts of the network relate to each other.

This study introduces a new kind of neural network that overcomes these problems. It can capture relationships both within subgraphs and between different subgraphs, even when they're far apart or vary in size and structure. The model also takes into account the labels or categories associated with subgraphs to improve prediction accuracy.

To train the model efficiently, the researchers used a smart mathematical strategy called bilevel optimization and improved it so that it works faster and more reliably than traditional methods. Tests on real-world data show that this new method outperforms existing techniques.

Link To Code: https://github.com/MLonGraph/ISNN

Primary Area: Deep Learning->Graph Neural Networks

Keywords: Subgraph Classification, Implicit Models

Submission Number: 14271