$\psi$DAG : Projected Stochastic Approximation Iteration for DAG Structure Learning
Keywords: Structure Learning, continuous optimization, directed acyclic graphs, stochastic optimization
TL;DR: We propose a scalable framework for learning DAGs using Stochastic Approximation with SGD and efficient projection methods, offering improved performance and computational efficiency for large-scale problems.
Abstract: Learning the structure of Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAGs) presents a significant challenge due to the vast combinatorial search space of possible graphs, which scales exponentially with the number of nodes. Recent advancements have redefined this problem as a continuous optimization task by incorporating differentiable acyclicity constraints. These methods commonly rely on algebraic characterizations of DAGs, such as matrix exponentials, to enable the use of gradient-based optimization techniques. Despite these innovations, existing methods often face optimization difficulties due to the highly non-convex nature of DAG constraints and the per-iteration computational complexity. In this work, we present a novel framework for learning DAGs, employing a Stochastic Approximation approach integrated with Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD)-based optimization techniques. Our framework introduces new projection methods tailored to efficiently enforce DAG constraints, ensuring that the algorithm converges to a feasible local minimum. With its low iteration complexity, the proposed method is well-suited for handling large-scale problems with improved computational efficiency. We demonstrate the effectiveness and scalability of our framework through comprehensive experimental evaluations, which confirm its superior performance across various settings.
Primary Area: optimization
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Submission Number: 1534
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