Distributed Nesterov Flows for Multi-agent Optimization

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Ren, Zihao, Wang, Lei, Shi, Guodong
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
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author Ren, Zihao
Wang, Lei
Shi, Guodong
author_facet Ren, Zihao
Wang, Lei
Shi, Guodong
contents Various distributed gradient descent algorithms for multi-agent optimization have incorporated the Nesterov accelerated gradient method, where the use of momentum enhances convergence rates. These algorithms have found broad applications in large-scale machine learning and optimization owing to their simplicity and low communication complexity. In this paper, we establish a continuous-time approximation of distributed Nesterov gradient descent. The convergence properties and convergence rate of the resulting distributed Nesterov flow are analyzed using Lyapunov methods. Building on these insights, we design new parameter choices within the flow, from which we derive flow-inspired discrete-time algorithms for multi-agent optimization. Surprisingly, the resulting algorithms achieve faster convergence compared to existing distributed gradient descent methods: they require fewer iterations to reach the same accuracy for strongly convex functions and exhibit an improved convergence rate for general convex functions without incurring additional communication rounds. Furthermore, we investigate the influence of the network topology on algorithm performance and derive an explicit relationship between the convergence rate and the graph condition number. Numerical simulations are presented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_17311
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Distributed Nesterov Flows for Multi-agent Optimization
Ren, Zihao
Wang, Lei
Shi, Guodong
Systems and Control
Various distributed gradient descent algorithms for multi-agent optimization have incorporated the Nesterov accelerated gradient method, where the use of momentum enhances convergence rates. These algorithms have found broad applications in large-scale machine learning and optimization owing to their simplicity and low communication complexity. In this paper, we establish a continuous-time approximation of distributed Nesterov gradient descent. The convergence properties and convergence rate of the resulting distributed Nesterov flow are analyzed using Lyapunov methods. Building on these insights, we design new parameter choices within the flow, from which we derive flow-inspired discrete-time algorithms for multi-agent optimization. Surprisingly, the resulting algorithms achieve faster convergence compared to existing distributed gradient descent methods: they require fewer iterations to reach the same accuracy for strongly convex functions and exhibit an improved convergence rate for general convex functions without incurring additional communication rounds. Furthermore, we investigate the influence of the network topology on algorithm performance and derive an explicit relationship between the convergence rate and the graph condition number. Numerical simulations are presented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.
title Distributed Nesterov Flows for Multi-agent Optimization
topic Systems and Control
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.17311