arXiv Machine Learning By Claudio Altafini

Asymptotic Analysis of Discrete-Time Self-Attention Dynamics in Transformers

Read the original on arXiv Machine Learning →

The paper investigates the discrete-time self‑attention dynamics of transformers, providing a full classification of equilibria and their stability for both single‑head and multi‑head cases. It shows that the main attractor is a consensus equilibrium aligned with the principal eigenvector of the value matrix, while locally asymptotically stable bipartite equilibria also exist in the single‑head scenario. The theoretical findings are corroborated by examining learned weight matrices from an actual transformer.

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arXiv AI
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arXiv:2512. 21113v2 Announce Type: replace Abstract: Transformers are increasingly adopted for modeling and forecasting time-series, yet their internal mechanisms remain poorly understood from a dynamical systems perspective.

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arXiv Machine Learning
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arXiv Machine Learning
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arXiv:2602. 19143v2 Announce Type: replace Abstract: This paper studies simple transformers trained on a high-order Markov chain, where the model must incorporate information from multiple past positions, each with different statistical importance.

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