AI
Circumventing the Computational Hardness of Computational Arbitrage
Publication: cs.AI updates on arXiv.org
Author: Nastaran Okati, Ricardo Olmedo, Moritz Hardt
Source published: 02/11/2026, 05:00:00 UTC
Briefing created: 02/11/2026, 06:22:44 UTC
Based on a feed excerpt; full article content has not been acquired. Source evidence retrieved 02/11/2026, 05:03:24 UTC.
Briefings
This article formalizes computational arbitrage as an allocation problem and proves it is generally NP-hard. However, it demonstrates that optimal allocation can be computed efficiently under a natural diminishing-returns condition on model performance scaling with inference spending. The study also provides sample-efficient methods for estimating model performance from limited data, offering economic insights where every funded model delivers equal marginal utility per dollar and arbitrage directs revenue away from low-utility providers.
Key points
- The article formalizes computational arbitrage as an allocation problem and proves it is generally NP-hard.
- Optimal allocation can be computed efficiently under a natural diminishing-returns condition on model performance scaling with inference spending.
Context
AI model marketplaces host providers with heterogeneous costs and capabilities, creating opportunities for computational arbitrage where intermediaries purchase and resell inference at a profit. This work addresses the challenge of scaling such strategies to large marketplaces.
Limitations
The evidence is from a preprint (arXiv:2610.40831v1) and does not include experimental results, user data, or specific model names. The study relies on theoretical proofs and economic insights rather than empirical validation.
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