Deep Learning
Towards a pretrained deep learning estimator of the Linfoot informational correlation
Berg, Stéphanie M. van den, Halekoh, Ulrich, Möller, Sören, Jensen, Andreas Kryger, Hjelmborg, Jacob von Bornemann
We develop a supervised deep-learning approach to estimate mutual information between two continuous random variables. As labels, we use the Linfoot informational correlation, a transformation of mutual information that has many important properties. Our method is based on ground truth labels for Gaussian and Clayton copulas. We compare our method with estimators based on kernel density, k-nearest neighbours and neural estimators. We show generally lower bias and lower variance. As a proof of principle, future research could look into training the model with a more diverse set of examples from other copulas for which ground truth labels are available.
Uncertainty Quantification for Machine Learning: One Size Does Not Fit All
Hofman, Paul, Sale, Yusuf, Hüllermeier, Eyke
Proper quantification of predictive uncertainty is essential for the use of machine learning in safety-critical applications. V arious uncertainty measures have been proposed for this purpose, typically claiming superiority over other measures. In this paper, we argue that there is no single best measure. Instead, uncertainty quantification should be tailored to the specific application. To this end, we use a flexible family of uncertainty measures that distinguishes between total, aleatoric, and epistemic uncertainty of second-order distributions. These measures can be instantiated with specific loss functions, so-called proper scoring rules, to control their characteristics, and we show that different characteristics are useful for different tasks. In particular, we show that, for the task of selective prediction, the scoring rule should ideally match the task loss. On the other hand, for out-of-distribution detection, our results confirm that mutual information, a widely used measure of epistemic uncertainty, performs best. Furthermore, in an active learning setting, epistemic uncertainty based on zero-one loss is shown to consistently outperform other uncertainty measures.
SigTime: Learning and Visually Explaining Time Series Signatures
Huang, Yu-Chia, Chen, Juntong, Liu, Dongyu, Ma, Kwan-Liu
Understanding and distinguishing temporal patterns in time series data is essential for scientific discovery and decision-making. For example, in biomedical research, uncovering meaningful patterns in physiological signals can improve diagnosis, risk assessment, and patient outcomes. However, existing methods for time series pattern discovery face major challenges, including high computational complexity, limited interpretability, and difficulty in capturing meaningful temporal structures. To address these gaps, we introduce a novel learning framework that jointly trains two Transformer models using complementary time series representations: shapelet-based representations to capture localized temporal structures and traditional feature engineering to encode statistical properties. The learned shapelets serve as interpretable signatures that differentiate time series across classification labels. Additionally, we develop a visual analytics system -- SigTIme -- with coordinated views to facilitate exploration of time series signatures from multiple perspectives, aiding in useful insights generation. We quantitatively evaluate our learning framework on eight publicly available datasets and one proprietary clinical dataset. Additionally, we demonstrate the effectiveness of our system through two usage scenarios along with the domain experts: one involving public ECG data and the other focused on preterm labor analysis.
Goal Reaching with Eikonal-Constrained Hierarchical Quasimetric Reinforcement Learning
Giammarino, Vittorio, Qureshi, Ahmed H.
Goal-Conditioned Reinforcement Learning (GCRL) mitigates the difficulty of reward design by framing tasks as goal reaching rather than maximizing hand-crafted reward signals. In this setting, the optimal goal-conditioned value function naturally forms a quasimetric, motivating Quasimetric RL (QRL), which constrains value learning to quasimetric mappings and enforces local consistency through discrete, trajectory-based constraints. We propose Eikonal-Constrained Quasimetric RL (Eik-QRL), a continuous-time reformulation of QRL based on the Eikonal Partial Differential Equation (PDE). This PDE-based structure makes Eik-QRL trajectory-free, requiring only sampled states and goals, while improving out-of-distribution generalization. We provide theoretical guarantees for Eik-QRL and identify limitations that arise under complex dynamics. To address these challenges, we introduce Eik-Hierarchical QRL (Eik-HiQRL), which integrates Eik-QRL into a hierarchical decomposition. Empirically, Eik-HiQRL achieves state-of-the-art performance in offline goal-conditioned navigation and yields consistent gains over QRL in manipulation tasks, matching temporal-difference methods.
Generative Stochastic Optimal Transport: Guided Harmonic Path-Integral Diffusion
We introduce Guided Harmonic Path-Integral Diffusion (GH-PID), a linearly-solvable framework for guided Stochastic Optimal Transport (SOT) with a hard terminal distribution and soft, application-driven path costs. A low-dimensional guidance protocol shapes the trajectory ensemble while preserving analytic structure: the forward and backward Kolmogorov equations remain linear, the optimal score admits an explicit Green-function ratio, and Gaussian-Mixture Model (GMM) terminal laws yield closed-form expressions. This enables stable sampling and differentiable protocol learning under exact terminal matching. We develop guidance-centric diagnostics -- path cost, centerline adherence, variance flow, and drift effort -- that make GH-PID an interpretable variational ansatz for empirical SOT. Three navigation scenarios illustrated in 2D: (i) Case A: hand-crafted protocols revealing how geometry and stiffness shape lag, curvature effects, and mode evolution; (ii) Case B: single-task protocol learning, where a PWC centerline is optimized to minimize integrated cost; (iii) Case C: multi-expert fusion, in which a commander reconciles competing expert/teacher trajectories and terminal beliefs through an exact product-of-experts law and learns a consensus protocol. Across all settings, GH-PID generates geometry-aware, trust-aware trajectories that satisfy the prescribed terminal distribution while systematically reducing integrated cost.
LG quietly added an unremovable Microsoft Copilot app to TVs
We've confirmed its presence on two LG smart TV models. Microsoft made a big punt this year with Copilot. The company put its AI chatbot into a and has also tried to integrate it into other tech products. The latest place you may find Copilot is on your LG smart television, whether you want it or not. Several LG smart TV owners have taken to over the past few days to complain that they suddenly have a Copilot app on the device and cannot uninstall it.
LG TV owners baffled by a Microsoft Copilot app that can't be removed
PCWorld reports that LG TV owners discovered a Microsoft Copilot app on their smart TVs after a webOS update that cannot be uninstalled. The app stems from LG's partnership with Microsoft for AI TV features, currently functioning as a web shortcut for AI search and recommendations. While users can hide Copilot from their home screen, the inability to completely remove the pre-installed app has frustrated many owners. LG TV owners are expressing confusion and annoyance online after Microsoft Copilot suddenly appeared on their smart TVs, with no option to uninstall the app, Tom's Hardware reports. Copilot was reportedly added to some LG models in conjunction with a recent webOS update and subsequently appears pinned to the home screen.
Nvidia Becomes a Major Model Maker With Nemotron 3
The world's top chipmaker wants open source AI to succeed--perhaps because closed models increasingly run on its rivals' silicon. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang arrives for a meeting with lawmakers in Washington, DC. Nvidia has made a fortune supplying chips to companies working on artificial intelligence, but today the chipmaker took a step toward becoming a more serious model maker itself by releasing a series of cutting-edge open models, along with data and tools to help engineers use them. The move, which comes at a moment when AI companies like OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic are developing increasingly capable chips of their own, could be a hedge against these firms veering away from Nvidia's technology over time. Open models are already a crucial part of the AI ecosystem with many researchers and startups using them to experiment, prototype, and build.
I thought AI would replace Photoshop. Here's why I still do it myself
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. I thought AI would replace Photoshop. Here's why I still do it myself Now that the novelty of generative AI is wearing off, it's clear that there are some serious limitations. When ChatGPT first debuted, I thought my days as a writer were numbered. There are so many things it can do, and I imagine artists have had similar pangs of fearful panic as generative AI keeps getting ever better at creating lifelike and/or stylized images.