Accurate Computation of the Log-Sum-Exp and Softmax Functions
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Publication:6324880
DOI10.1093/IMANUM/DRAA038zbMATH Open1509.65019arXiv1909.03469MaRDI QIDQ6324880FDOQ6324880
Authors: Pierre Blanchard, Desmond J. Higham, Nicholas J. Higham 
Publication date: 8 September 2019
Abstract: Evaluating the log-sum-exp function or the softmax function is a key step in many modern data science algorithms, notably in inference and classification. Because of the exponentials that these functions contain, the evaluation is prone to overflow and underflow, especially in low precision arithmetic. Software implementations commonly use alternative formulas that avoid overflow and reduce the chance of harmful underflow, employing a shift or another rewriting. Although mathematically equivalent, these variants behave differently in floating-point arithmetic. We give rounding error analyses of different evaluation algorithms and interpret the error bounds using condition numbers for the functions. We conclude, based on the analysis and numerical experiments, that the shifted formulas are of similar accuracy to the unshifted ones and that the shifted softmax formula is typically more accurate than a division-free variant.
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