Foundation Models for Combinatorial Search

This research will take place within the lab of Prof. Siegfried Nijssen, which is a research unit of the DTAI section of the Department of Computer Science of KU Leuven. The DTAI section is well-known for its contributions to Machine Learning, Symbolic Artificial Intelligence and combinations of different forms of Artificial Intelligence, including Neuro-Symbolic Artificial Intelligence.

Prof. Nijssen's lab studies interactions between Machine Learning and Combinatorial Search. Many problems in computer science can be seen as combinatorial search problems. From planning and scheduling problems, to explainable machine learning and computer programming: in all these problems we are looking for symbolic expressions that meet well-defined criteria. However, finding schedules, interpretable predictive models or computer programs that meet well-defined criteria is not easy; these problems are often NP-hard to solve, and many search algorithms have been proposed in the literature to solve these problems. We study how the integration of machine learning and combinatorial search algorithms can help solve such problems more efficiently, where we have a recent interest in how neural networks can be combined with symbolic forms of AI, leading to forms of Neuro-Symbolic AI.

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For more information please contact Prof. dr. Siegfried Nijssen, mail: [email protected].

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