mlsanityData to 14 Oct 2026

EvoRL: A GPU-accelerated Framework for Evolutionary Reinforcement Learning

arXiv 2501.15129 ↗First posted 25 Jan 2025cs.NEcited by 1

On the map: Deep reinforcement learning methods → RL for games and combinatorial optimization

Abstract (arXiv)

Evolutionary Reinforcement Learning (EvoRL) has emerged as a promising approach to overcoming the limitations of traditional reinforcement learning (RL) by integrating the Evolutionary Computation (EC) paradigm with RL. However, the population-based nature of EC significantly increases computational costs, thereby restricting the exploration of algorithmic design choices and scalability in large-scale settings. To address this challenge, we introduce textttEvoRL, the first end-to-end EvoRL framework optimized for GPU acceleration. The framework executes the entire training pipeline on accelerators, including environment simulations and EC processes, leveraging hierarchical parallelism through vectorization and compilation techniques to achieve superior speed and scalability. This design enables the efficient training of large populations on a single machine. In addition to its performance-oriented design, textttEvoRL offers a comprehensive platform for EvoRL research, encompassing implementations of traditional RL algorithms (e.g., A2C, PPO, DDPG, TD3, SAC), Evolutionary Algorithms (e.g., CMA-ES, OpenES, ARS), and hybrid EvoRL paradigms such as Evolutionary-guided RL (e.g., ERL, CEM-RL) and Population-Based AutoRL (e.g., PBT). The framework's modular architecture and user-friendly interface allow researchers to seamlessly integrate new components, customize algorithms, and conduct fair benchmarking and ablation studies. The project is open-source and available at: https://github.com/EMI-Group/evorl.

Key facts. Cited by 1 paper in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026). Placed in RL for games and combinatorial optimization, one of 15 directions in Deep reinforcement learning methods. Builds on 53 of its 87 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 25 Jan 2025.

Builds on

53 of 87 references.

References · 53

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38 more
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Citing papers per year: 2026: 1.

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  3. 2024Bridging Evolutionary Algorithms and Reinforcement Learning: A Comprehensive Survey on Hybrid Algorithms
  4. 2024Ancestral Reinforcement Learning: Unifying Zeroth-Order Optimization and Genetic Algorithms for Reinforcement Learning
  5. 2026RLDISCOVER: LLM-driven co-evolution of reinforcement learning algorithms
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