IEEE Taskforce on Evolutionary Scheduling and Combinatorial Optimisation

IEEE Computational Intelligence Society

Evolutionary Computation Technical Committee



Evolutionary Scheduling and Combinatorial Optimisation Webinar Series



*** Upcoming ***


Webinar #16: Meta-Black-Box Optimization: From Automatic Algorithm Configuration to Automatic Algorithm Generation

Speaker: Yuejiao Gong, South China University of Technology, China
Date: 12 August 2024
Time: 4:00 - 5:00pm (Beijing Time, UTC+8) [Convert to your local time]
Zoom link: https://vuw.zoom.us/j/96570642754

Speaker Biography

Yue-Jiao Gong is a Professor at the School of Computer Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, China. Her research interests include Optimization Methods based on Swarm Intelligence, Deep Learning, Reinforcement Learning, and their Applications in Smart Cities and Intelligent Transportation. She has published over 100 papers, primarily in ACM\IEEE Transactions series journals and reputable conferences such as GECCO, NeurIPS, and ICLR. Dr. Gong was honored as the Pearl River Young Scholar by the Guangdong Education Department in 2017 and received the Guangdong Natural Science Funds for Distinguished Young Scholars in 2022.

Abstract

Meta-Black-Box Optimization (MetaBBO) leverages a meta-level learner to automate the black-box optimization process, thereby enhancing efficiency and reducing human intervention. MetaBBO can be categorized into three distinct branches: the first focuses on automatic algorithm configuration or selection; the second employs neural networks to propose candidate solutions directly; and the third generates algorithms, as demonstrated in our study, by producing update rules expressed as closed-form equations. This talk provides a comprehensive overview of these three branches of MetaBBO, highlighting their methodologies, advantages, and current challenges.


Webinar #20: TBA

Speaker: Su Nguyen, RMIT University, Australia
Date: 2 December 2024
Time: TBA
Zoom link: TBA

Speaker Biography

TBA

Abstract

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Webinar #21: Machine learning for combinatorial optimization and applications

Speaker: Junchi Yan, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
Date: 13 January 2025
Time: TBA
Zoom link: TBA

Speaker Biography

Junchi Yan is currently a Full Professor with School of Artificial Intelligence, Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU), Shanghai, China. Before that, he was a Senior Research Staff Member with IBM Research China during 2011-2018. He received his PhD in Electronic Engineering from SJTU in 2015. He serves as Associate Editor for IEEE TPAMI, Pattern Recognition Journal, and Area Chair for ICML, ICLR, NeurIPS etc. He has received major fundings in AI from NSFC and MOST up to 10M RMB. His main research interest is machine learning and its intersection with other areas especially operations research. He has received the award of CVPR 2024 best paper candidate, the most influential papre by PaperDigest (NO.1) of AAAI21 and IJCAI23. He also received the People of the year for Intelligent Computing in 2023 by MIT Tech Review. He is a Fellow of IAPR and Senior Member of IEEE.

Abstract

In this talk, I will introduce our works on developing machine learning models for solving different problems in combinatorial optimization, regarding with both AI native and AI aided approaches, which are developing very fast especially in the machine learning community. Moreover, I will also cover the emerging applications including those from electronic design automation, computational chemistry and quantum computing. I will conclude the talk with some fresh thoughts on our ongoing and future works, and the potential of LLM and other kinds of (so-called) foundation models for combinatorial optimization.


Webinar #22: TBA

Speaker: Meng Xu, A*STAR - Agency for Science, Technology and Research, Singapore
Date: 17 February 2025
Time: TBA
Zoom link: TBA

Speaker Biography

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Abstract

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Webinar #23: TBA

Speaker: Handing Wang, Xidian University, China
Date: TBA 2025
Time: TBA
Zoom link: TBA

Speaker Biography

TBA

Abstract

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If you have any questions or queries, please email Yi Mei or Fangfang Zhang.




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Past Webinars


  1. Ant Colony Optimization for Complex Routing Problems
    Speaker: Ya-Hui Jia, Assistant Professor, South China University of Technology, China
    Date: 28 April 2022

  2. Evolutionary Neural Architecture Search: Past and Future
    Speaker: Yanan Sun, Professor, Sichuan University, China
    Date: 31 May 2022

  3. 复杂系统智能优化方法及其应用
    Speaker: Xinye Cai, Professor, Dalian University of Technology, China
    Date: 5 July 2022

  4. Automated Algorithm Design - Modelling and Learning on Combinatorial Optimisation Problems
    Speaker: Rong Qu, Associate Professor, University of Nottingham, UK
    Date: 26 July 2022

  5. Evolving Generalizable Solvers for Optimization
    Speaker: Ke Tang, Professor, Southern University of Science and Technology, China
    Date: 3 September 2022

  6. Solution Prediction via Machine Learning for Combinatorial Optimization
    Speaker: Xiaodong Li, Professor, RMIT University, Australia
    Date: 26 October 2022
    Video recording: YouTube and Bilibili.com

  7. Learning to Solve Vehicle Routing Problems
    Speaker: Zhiguang Cao, Scientist, Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech), Agency for Science Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore
    Date: 9 November 2022

  8. Genetic Programming Hyperheuristics in Dynamic Scheduling
    Speaker: Domagoj Jakobovic, Full Professor, University of Zagreb, Croatia
    Date: 12 January 2023
    Video recording: [YouTube] and [Bilibili.com]

  9. 学习辅助的进化优化算法
    Speaker: Zhi-Hui Zhan, Professor, South China University of Technology, China
    Date: 31 July 2023
    Slides: [PDF]

  10. Combinatorial Optimisation Can be Different from Continuous Optimisation for MOEAs
    Speaker: Miqing Li, Assistant Professor, University of Birmingham, UK
    Date: 31 August 2023
    Video recording: [YouTube]

  11. Why Do We Need Theoretical Research of Evolutionary Algorithms?
    Speaker: Chao Qian, Associate Professor, Nanjing University, China
    Date: 18 September 2023
    Slides: [PDF]

  12. Cross-domain Algorithm Selection: Algorithm Selection across Selection Hyper-heuristics
    Speaker: Mustafa Mısır, Associate Professor, Duke Kunshan University, China
    Date: 26 October 2023
    Video recording: [YouTube]

  13. Unveiling the winning algorithm: A sequence-based selection hyper-heuristic approach to the ROADEF/EURO inventory routing challenge
    Speaker: Ahmed Kheiri, Senior Lecturer, Lancaster University, UK
    Date: 13 May 2024
    Slides: [PDF]

  14. Automated Design of Local Search Algorithms with Machine Learning for Vehicle Routing Problems
    Speaker: Weiyao Meng, Data Scientist (KTP Associate), Nottingham University, UK
    Date: 10 June 2024
    Slides: [PDF]

  15. Collaborative Deep Reinforcement Learning for Solving Multi-Objective Vehicle Routing Problems
    Speaker: Yaoxin Wu, Assistant Professor, Eindhoven University of Technology, The Netherlands
    Date: 8 July 2024
    Video recording: [YouTube]

  16. Evolutionary approaches for drone-assisted electric vehicle routings: effective strategies and lessons learned
    Speaker: Setyo Tri Windras Mara, The University of New South Wales, Australia
    Date: 2 September 2024
    Slides: [PDF]

  17. Neural Combinatorial Optimization with Heavy Decoder: Toward Large Scale Generalization
    Speaker: Zhenkun Wang, Southern University of Science and Technology, China
    Date: 7 October 2024
    Video recording: [YouTube]

    Slides: [PDF]

  18. Automated Design of Selection Hyper-heuristics
    Speaker: Ender Özcan, University of Nottingham, UK
    Date: 4 November 2024
    Video recording: [YouTube]

    Slides: [PDF]


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