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The Mathematics of Artificial Intelligence (arxiv.org)
4 points by sieste on Jan 23, 2025 | hide | past | pdf | discuss on HN

In plain words: A tour of how calculus and probability describe how neural networks are built and trained, and how task-specific designs grew out of different math ideas. It skips the question of how well networks handle new data, and aims to draw more mathematicians into AI.

Abstract

This overview article highlights the critical role of mathematics in artificial intelligence (AI), emphasizing that mathematics provides tools to better understand and enhance AI systems. Conversely, AI raises new problems and drives the development of new mathematics at the intersection of various fields. This article focuses on the application of analytical and probabilistic tools to model neural network architectures and better understand their optimization. Statistical questions (particularly the generalization capacity of these networks) are intentionally set aside, though they are of crucial importance. We also shed light on the evolution of ideas that have enabled significant advances in AI through architectures tailored to specific tasks, each echoing distinct mathematical techniques. The goal is to encourage more mathematicians to take an interest in and contribute to this exciting field.

Gabriel Peyré
arXiv:2501.10465 · math.OC, cs.AI · submitted Jan 15, 2025
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