arXiv:2601.02253cs.LGcs.AR2026-01

用生物神经信号机制设计免乘法的神经网络,让AI在普通芯片上高效运行。

Neuro-Channel Networks: A Multiplication-Free Architecture by Biological Signal Transmission

  • 用通道宽度和神经递质代替权重,仅靠加减与位运算实现前向传播。
  • 在XOR和多数函数任务上达到100%准确率,证明可构建复杂决策边界。
  • 适合追求低功耗、无GPU依赖的边缘设备部署,如物联网芯片。

深度学习的快速普及正受限于对高性能硬件(尤其是GPU)的高度依赖。这些加速器成本高昂、能耗大且供应稀缺,制约了人工智能在边缘设备上的广泛应用。问题根源在于传统人工感知机依赖密集的矩阵乘法运算。而生物神经系统通过离子通道限制和化学递质水平调控信号传递,实现了极高的能效,无需高强度算术运算。受此启发,本文提出神经通道网络(NCN),一种免乘法架构:权重被替换为物理上限制信号幅度的通道宽度,另一参数作为神经递质按符号逻辑调节信号传输。前向传播仅使用加减法和位运算(最小值、符号判断),完全消除浮点乘法。在概念验证中,NCN可通过标准反向传播以100%准确率解决XOR和多数函数等非线性可分问题,证明其具备形成复杂决策边界的潜力。该架构为下一代类脑硬件提供高效替代方案,有望在通用CPU或超低功耗芯片上运行复杂模型,摆脱对昂贵GPU集群的依赖。

原文摘要 · Abstract (English)

The rapid proliferation of Deep Learning is increasingly constrained by its heavy reliance on high-performance hardware, particularly Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). These specialized accelerators are not only prohibitively expensive and energy-intensive but also suffer from significant supply scarcity, limiting the ubiquity of Artificial Intelligence (AI) deployment on edge devices. The core of this inefficiency stems from the standard artificial perceptron's dependence on intensive matrix multiplications. However, biological nervous systems achieve unparalleled efficiency without such arithmetic intensity; synaptic signal transmission is regulated by physical ion channel limits and chemical neurotransmitter levels rather than a process that can be analogous to arithmetic multiplication. Inspired by this biological mechanism, we propose Neuro-Channel Networks (NCN), a novel multiplication-free architecture designed to decouple AI from expensive hardware dependencies. In our model, weights are replaced with Channel Widths that physically limit the signal magnitude, while a secondary parameter acts as a Neurotransmitter to regulate Signal Transmission based on sign logic. The forward pass relies exclusively on addition, subtraction, and bitwise operations (minimum, sign), eliminating floating-point multiplication entirely. In this proof-of-concept study, we demonstrate that NCNs can solve non-linearly separable problems like XOR and the Majority function with 100% accuracy using standard backpropagation, proving their capability to form complex decision boundaries without multiplicative weights. This architecture offers a highly efficient alternative for next-generation neuromorphic hardware, paving the way for running complex models on commodity CPUs or ultra-low-power chips without relying on costly GPU clusters.

类脑计算免乘法边缘部署神经通道

Thank you to arXiv for use of its open access interoperability. PaperDance 不是 arXiv 官方产品;中文卡片由大模型生成,请以原文为准。