Some models are useful, but for how long?: A decision theoretic approach to choosing when to refit large-scale prediction models

Fuente: arXiv
Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hoffman, Kentaro, Salerno, Stephen, Leek, Jeff, McCormick, Tyler
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
Subjects:
Online Access:
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1866913639828553728
author Hoffman, Kentaro
Salerno, Stephen
Leek, Jeff
McCormick, Tyler
author_facet Hoffman, Kentaro
Salerno, Stephen
Leek, Jeff
McCormick, Tyler
contents Large-scale prediction models using tools from artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) are increasingly common across a variety of industries and scientific domains. Despite their effectiveness, training AI and ML tools at scale can cost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars (or more); and even after a model is trained, substantial resources must be invested to keep models up-to-date. This paper presents a decision-theoretic framework for deciding when to refit an AI/ML model when the goal is to perform unbiased statistical inference using partially AI/ML-generated data. Drawing on portfolio optimization theory, we treat the decision of {\it recalibrating} a model or statistical inference versus {\it refitting} the model as a choice between ``investing'' in one of two ``assets.'' One asset, recalibrating the model based on another model, is quick and relatively inexpensive but bears uncertainty from sampling and may not be robust to model drift. The other asset, {\it refitting} the model, is costly but removes the drift concern (though not statistical uncertainty from sampling). We present a framework for balancing these two potential investments while preserving statistical validity. We evaluate the framework using simulation and data on electricity usage and predicting flu trends.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2405_13926
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Some models are useful, but for how long?: A decision theoretic approach to choosing when to refit large-scale prediction models
Hoffman, Kentaro
Salerno, Stephen
Leek, Jeff
McCormick, Tyler
Methodology
Econometrics
Large-scale prediction models using tools from artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML) are increasingly common across a variety of industries and scientific domains. Despite their effectiveness, training AI and ML tools at scale can cost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars (or more); and even after a model is trained, substantial resources must be invested to keep models up-to-date. This paper presents a decision-theoretic framework for deciding when to refit an AI/ML model when the goal is to perform unbiased statistical inference using partially AI/ML-generated data. Drawing on portfolio optimization theory, we treat the decision of {\it recalibrating} a model or statistical inference versus {\it refitting} the model as a choice between ``investing'' in one of two ``assets.'' One asset, recalibrating the model based on another model, is quick and relatively inexpensive but bears uncertainty from sampling and may not be robust to model drift. The other asset, {\it refitting} the model, is costly but removes the drift concern (though not statistical uncertainty from sampling). We present a framework for balancing these two potential investments while preserving statistical validity. We evaluate the framework using simulation and data on electricity usage and predicting flu trends.
title Some models are useful, but for how long?: A decision theoretic approach to choosing when to refit large-scale prediction models
topic Methodology
Econometrics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2405.13926