Zhuoya Zhao

Yinqian Sun, Feifei Zhao, Zhuoya Zhao et al.

Inspired by the brain's information processing using binary spikes, spiking neural networks (SNNs) offer significant reductions in energy consumption and are more adept at incorporating multi-scale biological characteristics. In SNNs, spiking neurons serve as the fundamental information processing units. However, in most models, these neurons are typically simplified, focusing primarily on the leaky integrate-and-fire (LIF) point neuron model while neglecting the structural properties of biological neurons. This simplification hampers the computational and learning capabilities of SNNs. In this paper, we propose a brain-inspired deep distributional reinforcement learning algorithm based on SNNs, which integrates a bio-inspired multi-compartment neuron (MCN) model with a population coding approach. The proposed MCN model simulates the structure and function of apical dendritic, basal dendritic, and somatic compartments, achieving computational power comparable to that of biological neurons. Additionally, we introduce an implicit fractional embedding method based on population coding of spiking neurons. We evaluated our model on Atari games, and the experimental results demonstrate that it surpasses the vanilla FQF model, which utilizes traditional artificial neural networks (ANNs), as well as the Spiking-FQF models that are based on ANN-to-SNN conversion methods. Ablation studies further reveal that the proposed multi-compartment neuron model and the quantile fraction implicit population spike representation significantly enhance the performance of MCS-FQF while also reducing power consumption.

Wenxuan Pan, Feifei Zhao, Zhuoya Zhao et al.

The complex and unique neural network topology of the human brain formed through natural evolution enables it to perform multiple cognitive functions simultaneously. Automated evolutionary mechanisms of biological network structure inspire us to explore efficient architectural optimization for Spiking Neural Networks (SNNs). Instead of manually designed fixed architectures or hierarchical Network Architecture Search (NAS), this paper evolves SNNs architecture by incorporating brain-inspired local modular structure and global cross-module connectivity. Locally, the brain region-inspired module consists of multiple neural motifs with excitatory and inhibitory connections; Globally, we evolve free connections among modules, including long-term cross-module feedforward and feedback connections. We further introduce an efficient multi-objective evolutionary algorithm based on a few-shot performance predictor, endowing SNNs with high performance, efficiency and low energy consumption. Extensive experiments on static datasets (CIFAR10, CIFAR100) and neuromorphic datasets (CIFAR10-DVS, DVS128-Gesture) demonstrate that our proposed model boosts energy efficiency, archiving consistent and remarkable performance. This work explores brain-inspired neural architectures suitable for SNNs and also provides preliminary insights into the evolutionary mechanisms of biological neural networks in the human brain.

Yi Zeng, Feifei Zhao, Yuxuan Zhao et al.

The question "Can machines think?" and the Turing Test to assess whether machines could achieve human-level intelligence is one of the roots of AI. With the philosophical argument "I think, therefore I am", this paper challenge the idea of a "thinking machine" supported by current AIs since there is no sense of self in them. Current artificial intelligence is only seemingly intelligent information processing and does not truly understand or be subjectively aware of oneself and perceive the world with the self as human intelligence does. In this paper, we introduce a Brain-inspired and Self-based Artificial Intelligence (BriSe AI) paradigm. This BriSe AI paradigm is dedicated to coordinating various cognitive functions and learning strategies in a self-organized manner to build human-level AI models and robotic applications. Specifically, BriSe AI emphasizes the crucial role of the Self in shaping the future AI, rooted with a practical hierarchical Self framework, including Perception and Learning, Bodily Self, Autonomous Self, Social Self, and Conceptual Self. The hierarchical framework of the Self highlights self-based environment perception, self-bodily modeling, autonomous interaction with the environment, social interaction and collaboration with others, and even more abstract understanding of the Self. Furthermore, the positive mutual promotion and support among multiple levels of Self, as well as between Self and learning, enhance the BriSe AI's conscious understanding of information and flexible adaptation to complex environments, serving as a driving force propelling BriSe AI towards real Artificial General Intelligence.