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arXiv:2301.08292

Quantum HyperNetworks: Training Binary Neural Networks in Quantum Superposition

Juan Carrasquilla, Mohamed Hibat-Allah, Estelle M. Inack, Alireza Makhzani, Kirill Neklyudov, Graham W. Taylor, Giacomo Torlai

Published Jan 19, 2023• 1 citation
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Binary neural networks, i.e., neural networks whose parameters and activations are constrained to only two possible values, offer a compelling avenue for the deployment of deep learning models on energy- and memory-limited devices. However, their training, architectural design, and hyperparameter tuning remain challenging as these involve multiple computationally expensive combinatorial optimization problems. Here we introduce quantum hypernetworks as a mechanism to train binary neural networks on quantum computers, which unify the search over parameters, hyperparameters, and architectures in a single optimization loop. Through classical simulations, we demonstrate that our approach effectively finds optimal parameters, hyperparameters and architectural choices with high probability on classification problems including a two-dimensional Gaussian dataset and a scaled-down version of the MNIST handwritten digits. We represent our quantum hypernetworks as variational quantum circuits, and find that an optimal circuit depth maximizes the probability of finding performant binary neural networks. Our unified approach provides an immense scope for other applications in the field of machine learning.

DOI
10.48550/arxiv.2301.08292

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Binary neural networks, i.e., neural networks whose parameters and activations are constrained to only two possible values, offer a compelling avenue for the deployment of deep learning models on energy- and memory-limited devices. However, their training, architectural design, and hyperparameter tuning remain challenging as these involve multiple computationally expensive combinatorial optimization problems. Here we introduce quantum hypernetworks as a mechanism to train binary neural networks on quantum computers, which unify the search over parameters, hyperparameters, and architectures in a single optimization loop. Through classical simulations, we demonstrate that our approach effectively finds optimal parameters, hyperparameters and architectural choices with high probability on classification problems including a two-dimensional Gaussian dataset and a scaled-down version of the MNIST handwritten digits. We represent our quantum hypernetworks as variational quantum circuits, and find that an optimal circuit depth maximizes the probability of finding performant binary neural networks. Our unified approach provides an immense scope for other applications in the field of machine learning.
I present a novel approach to training Binary Neural Networks (BiNNs) by leveraging Variational Quantum Algorithms (VQAs). My method employs the hybrid quantum-classical framework of VQAs to train simulated quantum circuits as hypernetworks that generate effective BiNN configurations. By developing approximate methods for calculating the VQA objective and gradient, I significantly scale quantum hypernetworks—over two orders of magnitude larger than previous capabilities, overcoming the constraints of exact computations. Quantum circuits are trained to produce effective BiNNs for binary classification tasks on resized and native resolution MNIST datasets. My empirical investigation extends to various VQA hyperparameters, including sample and batch sizes, circuit depth, and Multi-Basis Encoding (MBE). The results reveal that my optimized circuits consistently generate BiNN configurations with competitive cross-entropy losses. This work showcases the practical scalability of quantum hypernetworks and demonstrates significant interdisciplinary contribution in quantum machine learning, inviting further exploration into hybrid quantum-classical computational techniques.
Deep learning is one of the most successful and far-reaching strategies used in machine learning today. However, the scale and utility of neural networks is still greatly limited by the current hardware used to train them. These concerns have become increasingly pressing as conventional computers quickly approach physical limitations that will slow performance improvements in years to come. For these reasons, scientists have begun to explore alternative computing platforms, like quantum computers, for training neural networks. In recent years, variational quantum circuits have emerged as one of the most successful approaches to quantum deep learning on noisy intermediate scale quantum devices. We propose a hybrid quantum-classical neural network architecture where each neuron is a variational quantum circuit. We empirically analyze the performance of this hybrid neural network on a series of binary classification data sets using a simulated universal quantum computer and a state of the art universal quantum computer. On simulated hardware, we observe that the hybrid neural network achieves roughly 10% higher classification accuracy and 20% better minimization of cost than an individual variational quantum circuit. On quantum hardware, we observe that each model only performs well when the qubit and gate count is sufficiently small.
In recent years, the field of machine learning has witnessed a paradigm shift with the emergence of hybrid quantum-classical neural networks. These networks combine the power of classical neural networks with the computational advantages offered by quantum variational circuits. This study presents a comprehensive survey of hybrid quantum-classical machine learning algorithms, focusing on their architecture, performance, and hyperparameter optimization techniques. Introducing the concept of hybrid quantum-classical machine learning and its significance in contemporary image classification tasks. It explores the theoretical foundations of quantum variational circuits and their integration with classical neural network architectures. Special attention is given to prominent algorithms such as Quantum Convolutional Neural Networks, Quanvolutional Neural Networks, and Quantum ResNet, each offering unique advantages in image classification tasks. A major aspect covered in this study is the hyperparameter optimization techniques employed in hybrid quantum-classical machine learning. The chapter discusses quantum-inspired optimization methods tailored for efficiently tuning the hyperparameters of complex neural network models. Through comparative analysis, the effectiveness of these optimization techniques is demonstrated in reducing computational overhead and improving model performance. Moreover, the study also delves into experimental results obtained from benchmarking hybrid quantum-classical models against traditional classical approaches. It highlights the accuracy variations observed across different quantum architectures and explores the impact of architectural permutations on model convergence. Insights gained from these experiments provide valuable guidance for researchers and practitioners seeking to leverage hybrid quantum-classical neural networks in real-world applications.
Binary Neural Networks (BiNNs), which employ single-bit precision weights, have emerged as a promising solution to reduce memory usage and power consumption while maintaining competitive performance in large-scale systems. However, training BiNNs remains a significant challenge due to the limitations of conventional training algorithms. Quantum HyperNetworks offer a novel paradigm for enhancing the optimization of BiNN by leveraging quantum computing. Specifically, a Variational Quantum Algorithm is employed to generate binary weights through quantum circuit measurements, while key quantum phenomena such as superposition and entanglement facilitate the exploration of a broader solution space. In this work, we establish a connection between this approach and Bayesian inference by deriving the Evidence Lower Bound (ELBO), when direct access to the output distribution is available (i.e., in simulations), and introducing a surrogate ELBO based on the Maximum Mean Discrepancy (MMD) metric for scenarios involving implicit distributions, as commonly encountered in practice. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed methods outperform standard Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), improving trainability and generalization.
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Deep learning is one of the most successful and far-reaching strategies used in machine learning today. However, the scale and utility of neural networks is still greatly limited by the current hardware used to train them. These concerns have become increasingly pressing as conventional computers are soon expected to approach the physical limitations that will slow their performance improvements in the near future. For these reasons, scientists have begun to explore alternative computing platforms, like quantum computers, for training neural networks. In recent years, variational quantum circuits have emerged as one of the most successful approaches to quantum deep learning on noisy intermediate scale quantum devices. We propose a hybrid quantum-classical neural network architecture where each neuron is a variational quantum circuit. We empirically analyze the performance of this hybrid neural network on a series of binary classification data sets using a simulated IBM universal quantum computer and a state-of-the-art IBM universal quantum computer. On the simulated hardware, we observe that the hybrid neural network achieves around 10% higher classification accuracy and 20% better minimization of the cost function than an individual variational quantum circuit. On the quantum hardware, we observe that each model only performs well when the qubit and gate count is sufficiently small.